


Lead and Bronze

by readoffwell



Category: Steven Universe (Cartoon)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Human, Arrests, Assassins & Hitmen, Blood Loss, Coffee Shops, Confrontations, Dangerous Situations, Early Mornings, Emotional Manipulation, F/F, F/M, Face Slapping, Fire, Fire department, Gunshot Wounds, Heist, High School, Hospitalization, Hospitals, Hurt/Comfort, Interrogation, Investigations, Lies, Mental Breakdown, Mental Health Issues, Mission Reports, Moving, Moving In Together, Night Terrors, Other, Past Child Abuse, Past Relationship(s), Physical Therapy, Police, Private Investigators, Realization, Road Trips, Slow Burn, Sparring, Steven being Steven, Surgery, Therapy, Training, Uber, Useless Lesbians, Wheelchairs, anemia, jasper really is getting a run for her money, past trauma, smoke inhalation, we all need a therapist like fluorite sometimes
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-02-09
Updated: 2020-05-22
Packaged: 2021-02-27 19:49:00
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 7
Words: 47,105
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22631335
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/readoffwell/pseuds/readoffwell
Summary: Case #002Even just being assigned to this case alone is a blessing large enough to sky rocket someone’s reputation. Required to accompany a private investigator on a mission that hits far too close to home, Jasper Zahri thinks it’s a nightmare.Moving in with each other, hiding secrets, spending nearly every single minute awake together as they tackle the largest criminal empire in the country, they both don’t think anything outside of business will come out of their time together. There’s just one thing they’re forgetting;They are both exactly each other’s type.
Relationships: Jasper/Pearl (Steven Universe)
Comments: 21
Kudos: 23





	1. Of Gunpoints and Meetings

**Author's Note:**

> YEAH! LEAD AND BRONZE IS BACK BABY! 
> 
> this isn't the most popular ship out in this fandom to write about but i love it so who cares. The first chapter is in Pearl's point of view, but the rest of the fic, asides from a few special occasions, will be in Jasper's! 
> 
> Without anymore wait, I introduce to you: Lead and Bronze

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> forgot to mention this is also an au where cops dont shoot innocent people and police brutality doesn't exist.

“Are you sure you want to do this mission?”

It was a hilarious question to her. She wasn’t indecisive, she wouldn’t asked for this mission in the first place if she wasn’t confident she wanted to do it. Spending months and months researching this, she nearly laughed at Rose’s question. But she didn’t, considering the topic at hand. 

“I’m sure Rose. I’m  _ very _ sure.” She reassured, trapping her pinkie finger between her thumb. It was a stupid nervous habit she had since she was a child, she wasn’t even nervous right now; she just wished Rose would stop being so stupidly sweet. “I wouldn’t ask if I didn’t think I could do it. I’m your best investigator, and we both know that.”

From her response, a frown and a low hum, the larger woman wasn’t satisfied with the answer. “My Pearl,” she started, pushing back  _ so elegantly _ her coiled ringlets over her broad shoulders, and the peach haired woman was immediately enchanted as she leaned into the table, trying not to stare. She flattened out the cream folder in her hands, before slipping out from it a stapled pile of papers, slightly bent but what could anyone expect from Rose? “All of the investigators,  _ all _ , that were assigned to this mission had unusual and even dangerous circumstances occur to them. Slashed tires, bomb packages, the one before you was  _ hospitalized _ and had to quit the case.” 

As if this wasn’t new information. It was on the news just a few months back, and since then Homeworld was flourishing in business without anyone on their backs. Pearl was determined to stop that, no matter what Rose thought. Still, the warm, inviting hand that fell over her cheek, so opposite and welcoming to her naturally cold body temperature, definitely made her stop in her tracks. “I know you’ve worked on other intense cases, but this would be your biggest one yet. Please think about this.”

“But I already have!” Pearl’s voice trembled subconsciously, she always had the habit of getting emotional quickly. “I’ve read all of the reports, I’ve done months of research on them! Ask Garnet, she can tell you how many times she had to drag me out of the office!”

Rose chewed at her lip, a clear sign she was contemplating much to Pearl's satisfaction. Finally, she sighed, with the tiniest frown at the corners of her lips. “Alright. I’ll assign this case to you.” 

“Thank you so much-” 

“If…” Pearl’s smile faltered immediately upon Rose’s single, dreaded word.  _ If, If what?  _ There was no reason she couldn’t do this mission, her record was nearly perfect. Out of every investigator in the company--no-- the  _ country _ , she was the one with the success rate closest to one hundred. 

“I'll assign you to this case if you agree to pair up with an officer.” 

“Rose!” The cry was much louder than she intended, the sheets of reports slid her way earlier now pushed back to their original owner. She couldn’t be serious! “I’ve only paired up with an officer once! And you know how that turned out!” 

“Pearl, you’re smart. You’re so much smarter than me.” No matter what situation, Rose’s compliments never failed to warm her heart. Despite her frustration, a deep red began to spread on her cheeks, horribly reminded once again how prominent blush was at the slightest bit of affection. “But you’re…” 

“What? Calculated? Dedicated and smart? Innovative?” 

“No- Well yes! But that’s not what I’m talking about. Pearl, you’re...dainty.” The thin woman’s face immediately dropped. “You’re smart, and strong when it comes to your intellect, you’re  _ powerful _ .” 

“Yes and-” 

“You wouldn’t be able to defend yourself if something went south. I can’t even begin to imagine if I excused you from being paired with a partner and something horrible happened to you.” Rose  _ did _ have a point, even if she didn’t want to admit to herself even. Sure, she had a few years of fencing on her shoulders, but she didn’t have any muscle. She worked  _ a lot _ , which definitely contributed to her flawless reputation, but it also meant that this, added with her overall pickiness and indifference to food in general (asides from her father's Yakitori), definitely didn’t make her lack of muscle better.

She tried gesturing an argument, anything that would get Rose to change her mind. Despite her knowledge, she couldn’t think of a single reason, and with a sigh of defeat, she nodded her head in agreement. “Fine.”

“Thank you, my Pearl.” Rose looked more than relieved at her agreement, and once her excitement was over she leaned back into her seat, the chair visibly dipping down as she did. “I’ll start sorting things out. I’ll get back to you as soon as we get everything planned.”

“Thank you Rose for this opportunity.” Despite her disappointment with the aspect of a teammate, she was satisfied and relieved she convinced Rose to let her take this mission. As she stood, the papers were folded back into her hands. She silently thanked the other woman before leaving her to her business. 

At least a dozen others had tried this case. She scoffed, that was a dozen more than they should’ve. She was sure  _ she  _ was going to be the one to take Homeworld down. She had everything required; the willpower, the smarts, everything. She should've been the first one they assigned this to!

She was going to take this empire down single-handedly. Almost. 

Two weeks. It took  _ two weeks _ for her to receive feedback from Rose. Big cases definitely took time to plan, especially if they were teaming up with government sources and needed to keep such confidentiality like they did now. But everyone around her could see that she was dying from the wait. Her roommates, Garnet and Amethyst, couldn’t keep track of the times they worked together to coax Pearl back to bed at three in the morning. And that took the  _ both _ of them. 

Finally, things were planned out.  _ Finally _ , she got a call back from Rose informing her they assigned her to her partner, where they would be housed, how Rose managed to tackle away the idea of a government agent accompanying her on this mission. Pearl wanted to kiss her, more than usual, but she only thanked the other over the phone, hung up the call, and screamed the opposite of bloody murder at six in the morning. 

Of course there were a few more things they needed to do before the mission could actually start. She wouldn’t be meeting her partner until they arrived at their disclosed location, but within the next week she was expected to undergo a thorough psychological evaluation, there were at least five meetings set with the FBI in order to make sure there were absolutely no miscommunications (led by Rose, they were an independent business, but with big cases like this, country-wide drug empires, it was safe to say they weren’t allowed to take this by themselves even though Pearl was more than confident they could), and Pearl needed to pack her things as quickly as possible. 

“Amethyst, you can’t just throw my trophies into a box. You’re forgetting the bubble wrap!” 

Pearl was aware she was nagging, and she was really trying to keep herself as stress free as possible during these next few days, but she just couldn’t help but cringe at Amethyst’s careless packing of some of her most prized possessions.

The shorter in return stopped her swift actions, held the trophy in her hands and observed it with a regaled eye. “Jeez, P, if they’re really made of gold then they’re not going to break that easily.” Despite her teasing, Pearl identified the sounds of bubble wrap being ripped from its roll. 

“Gold is actually a soft material. One gram of it can be flattened into a square meter sheet.” 

“Smart ass. Save your thinking for later.” As she stood, she turned her head to where Amethyst was perched against the couch, a bottle of soda unnervingly leaning against her without a lid. Russet eyes rolled at her remark, though she still handled the trophy with caution. “ Not surprised, though. Valedictorian? 2014 Math Olympics Champion? Why do you need to bring these, anyways?”

“To make my room feel more at home. I work better if I feel more comfortable in my environment.” Altogether, if she could work this case from home she would. But this case was different than others from the past. She would be in actual  _ danger _ , and living with Garnet and Amethyst, she didn’t dare risk their wellbeing, too. She couldn’t even tell them where she and her partner were staying, not even  _ Rose _ could know.

Amethyst scoffed. “You’re literally a celebrity, P. Damn, you and Rose are fucking detective legends, Garnet and Bis’ are cops. I’m a loser compared to you guy, and that’s saying something.”

“A paramedic is far from a boring job.” She really wanted to scold Amethyst on her language, and correct her for the thousandth time that she and Rose were  _ investigators _ and not detectives, but she wanted to keep her last days before the mission as care-free as possible. No bickering for her, even when the shorter drank coffee directly from the pot earlier that morning. “Don’t you remember when you had to help Bismuth?”

Both women froze on the spot. That was a day they would never forget, even two years later. Getting that call from Garnet, that Bismuth got hit during a standoff and was rushed to the hospital with life threatening injuries, spending the next few days waiting in fear for the woman to wake up. It was a risk of the job being a cop, but it still didn’t dull down the pure fear when it actually happened. “That was horrible. I didn’t think I’d ever have to treat any of you. I mean, before her I-” 

“Yes, but we don’t talk about that.” 

“Right,” Amethyst’s words faltered for a moment. “I just hope you don’t get knocked up. I can’t believe you didn’t get paired with Garnet or Bismuth!”

“They both have very large reputations, but apparently the officer I’m paired with is very skilled.” Pearl could only shrug off the inquiry, with Amethyst finishing up the last box. “She must be. They’re bringing her in from the next state over! She’s sacrificing being farther away from home than I am.”

“You think she’s gonna be cute?” 

“Amethyst!” What an inappropriate question to ask! She was indifferent to this officer at this point. At first, she was  _ devastated _ that she had to work with anyone on this mission; the last time she worked with an officer, she was uncomfortably hit on, never given a moment of peace, and it was the  _ fastest  _ mission she ever completed. Once she was back home, she requested to Rose that she never be paired with him again. As long as this police officer wasn’t like that and gave her her room to think, everything would be okay. “But...I do suppose her being attractive wouldn’t be bad per say…” 

“There you go, P!” The short woman stuck her tongue out. “But she really must be experienced then. They’re bringing out their big guns, though I can’t blame them. A double zero mission, how do you feel about that?”

“I’ve been on a zero case before.” A 013 to be exact, but never anything below. “I’m sure it won’t be much different. Even if it is 002.” 

Their case system was based on numbers, at least for their most important missions. The more zeros a case had, the more dangerous it was. The fact she was at  _ double _ zero, double zero  _ two _ to be exact, was still something she was trying to process. If they were talking technically, she could say she was taking their most important mission. Homeworld was an empire, an empire the government had been trying to tackle since the nineties. Working in four different sections, with  _ thousands _ of members all across the country, it was only fair that they split the case into four different sections. It was still insane to her that they could have hundreds of bases and somehow not be caught by now. It seemed like whenever one base was compromised, two more were there to replace them immediately. There was a reason they were their biggest culprit. 

Garnet would be here with the truck soon; they would load up their goods, they’d all have one last dinner together, and then she’d leave for her temporary housing. She wanted to spend as much time today with all of her friends as she could; this investigation could take months, and she wasn’t planning on giving up until she made a dent in what Homeworld considered their legacy.

The day was busy with preparation after preparation, and it was almost unbelievable how fast time flew by. It was as if the universe knew she was under a busy schedule, and it was doing the best it to skip hour after hour. However, soon enough she was updated that her belongings were safely delivered to the house. Now, for the rest of the evening, she could relax, spend time with her friends, and when she arrived at her temporary housing, meet her new officer and go over the basis for the new day tomorrow.

And thankfully for them, the restaurant did not mind the crowd that formed with the tables brought together.

Everyone decided to make an appearance at her farewell party; even Garnet’s moms came. Two large tables were combined together in order to make enough seating, and despite their best efforts to be as quiet as they could, nearby restaurant byers were staring, and she couldn’t find a mind to care.

“So, when this is over, the taxi’s going to be waiting right outside,” Sapphire, squeezed right between her daughter and her wife, seldomly showed what she was feeling in her voice or her expression. There were tiny ways she showed her excitement, with the whims of a smile against stout lips, the way she scrunched the napkin between her fingers, and the more than occasional glances she directed towards her impetuous partner, almost like she was asking her to help keep her enthusiasm intact. “How does it feel knowing the case is about to begin?”

“I won’t lie,” Pearl’s response was desisted momentarily, circling the straw of her tea around the rim of the glass. “I’m a bit nervous, especially after reading past reports. But I know I’m one of the best, I’m more than confident I can do this." The newborn grin that had heightened greatly only backed her words, and a collective chorus of entertained laughter and shouts in agreement followed, and she was suddenly glad she took a Naproxen before the celebration. 

“Are you sure you don’t want us to drive you?” Greg’s voice was next to speak, and as she turned to where he sat across to her left, she could see he really meant himself and Rose, who, as expected, had their arms pressed together and their hands cupping over one another’s. It was stupid for her to get jealous; Rose was merely a silly high school crush, and she had to acknowledge that even to this day. Still, that didn’t stop the useless jealousy that bubbled from inside. “Steven has always wanted to visit the aquarium nearby.”

“They have the new baby turtles there!” Steven’s outcry made a smile replace the slight frown that had subconsciously replaced her original grin, and she couldn’t help but appreciate the boy’s enthusiasm. 

“I’m not allowed to share my exact location, you already know that. We were barely able to approve taking a taxi to the house.” Her words prompted a collective groan of disappointment among the entire franken-table. She poked at the salad in front of her, and nauseous due to the excitement of the situation, couldn’t help but push it away. She wouldn’t need a box, there was plenty of food she could eat at the house if she felt better later. “You’re acting like I’m moving across the entire country. It’ll be an hour’s drive at most. Don’t worry.”

“You were always so assiduous,” Bismuth’s head shook as Pearl stood up, and following suit with everyone else, she did as well. Pearl’s bag slipped over her thin shoulder, and while Greg offered to pay for the entirety of the meal, she still placed a few bills against her napkin; it was the least she could do considering everyone was gathered here because of her. She wanted to escape the restaurant fast so the farewells could happen outside; she would rather get crushed to death in the fresh air rather than the stuffy restaurant.

Everyone except Greg followed; he stayed behind to watch the meals, and it wasn’t long before teary farewells were shared. Pearl was no doubt the most emotional of their group, but this time, she could call herself  _ Garnet _ compared to everyone else.

“You’re going to kick some serious butt, P!” She, for once, didn’t mind the playful fist that collided with her back, and even retorted back with a slight push against Amethyst's shoulder, only to be suddenly trapped in a hug between her roommates, not that she didn’t enjoy it. 

“I think you mean I’m going to kick  _ multiple  _ behinds.” In between hug after hug, she spotted the taxi pulling into the lot, and as much as she wanted to continue her warm embrace with Bismuth, she knew she couldn’t keep them waiting, and her lungs also needed some space. 

She was only stopped in her tracks when she felt velvety soft lips flutter against her forehead, right in the middle of the faint scar that stood there, and she couldn’t help but gasp as Rose stared down at her with those beautiful, warm eyes. “You promise you’ll call me if you need any help, right?”

“I swear, I’ll call you when I’m not busy.” She couldn’t help but grin when Bismuth propped the taxi door open, as if a coach aiding royalty into a carriage. She situated herself into the back seat, pressing her purse against her body, and her grin only heightened when a calloused hand cupped her own. She squalled with embarrassment when she felt lips press her palm, and she was slightly disappointed when they pulled back and the car’s door replaced its place. Nonetheless, she rolled down the window in a final, collective goodbye of frantic waving and cheering; and they kept like that until the taxi pulled from the parking lot, and much to the restaurant owner’s assumed gratefulness, the farewell party was officially over. 

Now, the case finally started. For the next months she would eat, sleep, and breathe this investigation, and make it farther than anyone else on this case had ever gone.

With an hour at least left to kill on the ride, she shuffled in her bag and pulled out a vanilla file, the one from earlier, taking this free time to study a bit more. She flipped to the last of stapled paper that held information of who she would be living with the next months. There wasn’t a picture, unfortunately, but it was something at least.

**_Officer Jasper Zahri_ **

**_S: Female_ **

**_DOB: 10/14/97_ **

Twenty-one years old, only one year younger than she was. She was partially glad for that; having someone in her age group would bound to help them work together better. She hoped that that would be the case, but knew in the end it came down to their personalities and their ability to work well with others. There was a bit more data about her partner, abilities, strengths, and such. There was one piece that caught her eye, however.

_ Extra Notes: _

_ Multiple rejections towards Case #001-003, assumption of inability of teamwork participation. Post-traumatic stress disorder may be a contributing factor.  _

She raised a brow at the last statements. An officer refusing such an interesting case? Curiosity immediately overcame any of her fear of not getting along with the other woman, and was immediately interested in what finally caused her to take the case.

She reviewed all of the files she had been given multiple times, though by the time she grew tired of reading the same sentences over and over again only half of the trip passed. The file slipped back into the bag, and for the rest of the trip, she leaned back against the cushioned seat and enjoyed the passing scenery.

Half an hour passed quickly, and it wasn’t long before the taxi pulled into the driveway of a familiar address. This was where she would be staying for the next few months, or how ever long it took to get this case over with. It was a one story, and while she didn’t exactly fall heads over heels over the green, it wasn’t as if she’d be spending all of her time staring at the infrastructure. She’d have to do a bit of work with the yard, especially the overgrown weeds, but overall it seemed comfortable. She didn’t have to pay rent for the time she spent here, so she didn’t have room to complain.

She thanked the driver and pulled her key from her bag, finally handed by Rose the day before, though found it strange how nobody came to greet her at the door. She expected her partner to be eager to introduce herself. At least, that’s what she thought.

The key was jammed into the lock, and with a slight  _ click _ , the door allowed itself to be swung open, and the thin woman eagerly welcomed the warm air that followed.

She was greeted immediately with a living room that led further down a hallway, which seemed very plain compared to the home she shared with Garnet and Amethyst. Instead of having posters, stains on the ceiling ( not even Pearl knew how they got there), any sort of decoration, there was simply a couch and a television propped against the wall, and that was it.  _ Still _ , she didn’t hear any noise at all; no footsteps, no hollering, nothing. Was her partner even home? Even when she made it down the hall and into the kitchen, not a single sound. The notes never said anything about any hearing deficits.

The kitchen seemed decent, as well. Enough room for her to cook, and she particularly eyed the stainless-steel counters and fridge. Enough room under the cabinets to store cleaning supplies, too. There was a second hall that led to where she assumed the bedrooms and bathroom were, and overall she was satisfied with the house. It was cozy, and she definitely wouldn’t mind staying here unless the great condition of the front of the house was making up for something horrible in the bedrooms and bathroom. 

Just as her attention focused on the kitchen table and her bag was placed against its top, a sudden commotion from the second hall prompted Pearl to jolt violently, nearly tripping over the nearest chair with a strained yelp passing through gritted teeth.

And before she knew it, a large figure was standing in the hallway, and a gun was being pointed towards her head _.  _

_ What in the world- _

“Put your hands where I can see them, right now!”

Pearl obliged as quickly as the words were given, and the bag immediately toppled over against the chair as she brought her hands into the air, just near the sides of her neck. Despite the fact she was being held at gunpoint, for  _ whatever  _ reason, she still somehow observed the person currently holding a firearm to her forehead.

Pearl wasn’t short by any means, but this woman was  _ tall _ , at least six foot five, possibly seven. Her skin was a pretty, scratch that  _ gorgeous _ light umber, though there were places where light splotches of skin interrupted the dark.  Vitiligo , that’s what she had. Long parmesan hair was tied up, though even then it trailed to nearly her backside, loose strands pressed back messily against her ear. A gun was being aimed at her head, yet she still noticed these details. What had to be the most distracting was the fact she was in nothing but joggers and a sports brassiere.

“Name, and what you’re doing here. Now.”

It took a moment for her to actually comprehend what was being barked at her, though when she did, ignited by the thumb against the smooth metal traveling closer to the trigger, she immediately began to stumble over her words, her mouth turning dry instantly.

“I’m-“ her voice cracked before she continued, “I-I’m Pearl Eguchi. I’m from Beach City, and I’m the private investigator paired with Officer Jasper Zahri for Case #002.” She despised how her words were shaky, though she couldn’t exactly blame herself for her voice’s inconsistency. This woman  _ had  _ to be a robber, finding the house with no cars in the driveway a perfect target. Did she kill her teammate? Is that why there was no response? 

The woman paused immediately, and it was remarkable how fast the gun was pulled away from her body to her relief. Her expression turned from intense to shocked, beginning a bout of stutters for a solid minute.

“O-Oh,” she started, and her posture still tense. “I thought… I thought you were an intruder.” The pistol, safety she prayed still on, was  _ tossed  _ into the doorway to the woman’s left, and with the gun out of the way, she felt more relaxed as the woman took a few steps forward. “I’m Officer Jasper Zahri.”

_ Oh _ .

Pearl reached her hand out, even if clammy, and it wasn’t long before a calloused hand met it, and she couldn’t help how awkward it felt.

“P-Pearl Eguchi, it’s a pleasure.”

“Your- _ uh _ \- boxes are in your room,” Jasper turned, and she twisted her body to point at the room across the hall. “When the worker dropped them off, I put them in your room. I put the bags that said ‘need to be refrigerated’ in the fridge, obviously. I hope you don’t mind I chose my room first." A fumbling chuckle escaped her lips, and she was visibly relieved when Pearl nodded, swooping her bag from where it fell over the chair.

“A-Alright. I’m going to go settle in, and then we can go over our plans. Thank you.” 

The other woman allowed her room to slip past her and down the hall. Upon entering the spare bedroom and closing the door with care, hands slapped over her face, and she felt like  _ screaming _ . 

_ That didn’t just happen.  _

It did. This was the worst first meeting she could have with anyone, especially someone she was going to be working with for so long. How did she convince Officer Zahri she was an intruder?! She forced herself to calm down. She needed to get settled in and get back to her partner.

It took a while longer than she expected to settle in, not because she took long to unpack, but because she procrastinated. She still felt the tense awkwardness of the situation, and she wanted it all to fade before she went outside again. Besides, she was sure Jasper would prefer to time to recover, as well. However, she would need to come out sometime, and gripping her folder, she turned the knob and eventually made her way out into the hallway.

The first thing she noticed was how Jasper, who had seated herself at the table, changed into a gray t-shirt.  _ Thank the stars _ , she didn’t need anything else distracting her. She stood immediately upon Pearl entering the kitchen, and when she spoke again, her voice was less rough than their first encounter, and a bit more sincere. “Hey, I’m sorry for that rough start. I wasn’t expecting you to be here so early.”

“It’s alright. It’s over and done with.” She was relieved when it was apparent the file’s assumption was proven wrong; Jasper, from what it seemed,  _ did _ know how to talk to people and she looked ready to discuss with Pearl. She was even more flattered when the larger woman slid back the chair next to her. Shel had no idea how she was partnered with such a considerate individual. “I don’t know about you, but I want to get this case started as soon as possible. So, let’s review.

Homeworld is a mafia  _ slash _ criminal organization  _ slash _ Cosa Nostra, notoriously well known for its empire of hitmen, drug dealers and copious reports of gang activity, and is considered one of the most formulated, largest and dangerous groups of criminals out there. Homeworld consists of four known factions, Faction Yellow, Faction Blue, Faction White, and Faction Pink. Faction Pink is presumingly inactive after the death of faction leader Pari “Pink Diamond” Diament five years ago after police interference and an anonymous tip, yet no one knows what happened to those who worked under her. Each faction is alleged to have a main base each and more across the country.” When Jasper didn’t continue or add her thoughts into the conversation, she carried on. “Case #002, assigned to Officer Jasper Zahri and Private Investigator Pearl Eguchi, is specified on Faction Yellow after multiple anonymous tips have pinpointed an alleged base around the location of Ocean Town.

Case numbers indicate the level of risk and danger to those assigned them, with cases starting with zeros the most intense. Only large cases require number identification. Investigators on cases with a number higher than 030 are required to be accompanied by an officer. Both the officer and investigator are required to be transferred to an approved temporary housing for the safety of not only them but also their friends and family. Not much is known about Faction Yellow, though sufficient evidence has allowed investigators to pinpoint a broad location. Investigators assigned onto this case have been regularly blocked and obstructed from their duties, including but not prohibited to window shattering, explosives, detonator packages, and even an incident in which the corresponding officer was sent to the hospital for a gunshot wound in the stomach. Both investigators and officers assigned to this case are adviced to take extreme caution for their safety.”

When the entirety of the introduction was read, the paper was set back against the table’s surface, and Pearl had to take a moment to absorb the information despite reading it to herself countless times. Reading it outloud really made her realize how dangerous this mission was, and how difficult it was going to be. There had been at least a dozen investigators before her to attempt this case, which meant there had been a dozen times where they had given up and signed off the case due to varying reasons. She knew that she wouldn’t give up, however it certainly didn’t help the weight placed upon her shoulders.

“My commander gave me the instructions to overview before my trip here.” Finally saying something, Jasper let her hand rise up to rest against her chin, her elbow positioned on the table. For talking about a risk to the two that could very much end up with them injured or dead, she seemed very laid back and comfortable. “Of course, it’s never easy to hear that. I guess it just helped it sink in more.”

“It’s not every day you’re assigned a double zero case. Though I came prepared with my own notes.” With a grin, she flipped the paper over, where on its backside, pencil scribbles filled nearly the entire page. “I read the reports of the former investigators on this case and wrote down things that can help us throughout this case, what to avoid and safety preparedness we can take to avoid anything…unusual happening to us.”

“Sounds good, give me the run through.” Jasper crooned, captivated, and Pearl studied the way for just a second the way Jasper’s gaze trailed off to more than just her eyes.

“Right,” Pearl nodded, and continued with the scribbles pressed against the paper. “It’ll be the best if we keep the windows locked and the curtains down at all times and inform each other when we’re going out outside of this investigation. We should take buses and taxis wherever we go, and we should never take a direct excretion from the house to our destination. It seems overbearing, but it’s necessary.”

“Right. So, when we have that appointment tomorrow at the sheriff’s station to interview…what’s her name…”

“Peridot Olivine?”

“Yeah, her. We’re going to take multiple bus routes there?”

“Yes. It’s going to feel very excessive at first, but it’s better than getting tracked down and getting a bullet in a leg. I don’t have experience with that, but my friend did, and she said it hurts horribly.” She reminisced back to a while back when Bismuth was injured in the line of duty. She was in the hospital for nearly two weeks and got droned onto multiple pain medications. Steven’s support and enthusiasm (“You’re going to have a cool battle scar!” He had mentioned, painfully floundering over Bismuth in her hospital bed. ) seemed to help, but medication and an overenthusiastic 12-year-old boy could only do so much.

“Trust me, it hurts.” Jasper’s hand that wasn’t resting against the table dragged down to her thigh, and Pearl was confused, and intrigued, at first before she realized the nail of her index was pressing into the fabric of her pants. “Right here, three years back. Spent two months on bed rest and had to take a stupid amount of physical therapy.” She leaned back against the cushion, and her hand rested over her head coyly. “It does leave a cool scar, though, good to pick up chicks with.”

Jasper’s words prompted bright flush to spread across her cheeks, her entire body turning warm, and suddenly she lost her ability to speak. Jasper seemed quite content with her reaction with the mischievous smirk crawling onto her face, and amused, her hand trailed back to the table, her nail playing with the stray napkin that was left there, just inches away from Pearl. “Sorry, I’m just teasing. Did I go too far?”

“No, no. I’m sure it is a great conversation starter.” Pearl had been on this case for a little under an hour, though somehow this was already the most interesting one she had ever been on. She was held at gunpoint and nonchalantly flirted with by the same woman in the span of twenty minutes. “I’m sorry for your accident, it seems like it would hurt.”

“It did, but I’m tougher than some steaming piece of lead.” The larger woman shrugged, before glancing up at the digital clock stationed directly above the stove. She stood from her chair, only towering over Pearl more, her arms stretching over her head. “It’s getting late. Don’t get me wrong, I don’t mind pulling an all nighter, but tomorrow’s a big day.”

“I agree, I’m usually preparing for bed by now.” The thinner stepped away from her own chair, somehow sad that this conversation was already being cut short. “Well, goodnight, Jasper, I’ll see you bright and early in the morning.”

The faucet was cut off, yielding the warm rush of water that followed. The toothbrush was clinked once against the sink’s encasing, before it was placed back in the mug placed against the counter. It was set next to Jasper’s orange one, and she was amused on how it nearly resembled a tiger.

The bathroom was satisfactory enough; on the smaller side, though there was enough space for both Jasper and Pearl to have their items inside. She glanced over to where their individual bins lay just near the toilet, filled with their different toiletries, and when she bent down to grab her toothpaste- kid’s strawberry, even when she was  _ twenty-two _ years old-, she noticed how many cans of Axe Jasper had in her’s. She already assumed by her physique, but now it was confirmed that her new roommate was someone who worked out quite a bit; she would have to take into mind her gym schedule.

Her hand swept through peach hair, from her loosely composed bangs, all the way to the peach fuzz across the nape of her neck. It was about time for a trim and redye, though what mattered most is that it still looked alright. Decent enough for her standards, at least.

The light of the bathroom was switched off, and she shivered as she was suddenly hit with the chilly air of the hallway. The house seemed to have a bit of a heating problem, though the bathroom and their bedrooms were warm enough; it wouldn’t be a problem as long as they never needed to spend the night out in the living room.

While impossible, she wished she could’ve shipped her own mattress to the house. Pearl was no stranger to sleeping problems, but she was grateful that she at least had her own comforter with her. The sheets were as comfy as she remembered from last night, and while she knew it would be hours before she would fall into slumber, she felt physical tiredness immediately gnaw at her limbs upon rolling into the mattress. She tucked herself in, burying the side of her face into the soft pillow, and let out a sigh.

Tomorrow would be a big day, and she would be prepared.

Wouldn’t she?

She couldn’t let anyone down, and she intended not to.

Jasper told herself to breath; she was getting too caught up in her mind.

She ran a hand through her long mane of hair, tossing as much of it as behind her shoulder as possible. Now that she was in her own room, she felt comfortable enough letting it out of its tie. Having her hair up made her feel more comfortable, somehow, and as she was still getting to know her partner, she wanted to keep it up for as much of the time as she could. She felt vulnerable without it up for some reason, and while she never asked herself why, she merely never questioned it.

It wasn’t as if she didn’t trust Pearl, not at all. She read her files, she had succeeded in countless missions, and her background check came up completely clean. She knew, however, people could get away with things far horrible, and that simple thought made her vigilant all over again.

It was worse that she already pulled a gun on her partner during their first introduction. That was something she would most likely be embarrassed by for the rest of her  _ life _ . Even more, she flirted with her right after.

This case was already horrible. Maybe she could quit, it wasn’t too late to sneak out. They could have a replacement for her by the time morning came.

_ “Jasper, why are you avoiding this case? You do realize this could boost your reputation even being assigned to it.” _

_ Her commander’s words came upon deaf ears, unable to even consider accepting the job. She had been asked to go on this case multiple times, yet after every single offer, she still refused. She knew her commander was getting upset at her, but it was a problem she couldn’t solve; really, a problem she didn’t mind not solving. “I’m aware, ma’am. I just don’t want to do it.” _

_ “An officer not taking a double zero case?” The tan woman scoffed, leaning back against her seat with a face full of disapproval. “Especially coming from you, our best officer. You’re our very best, we need you on this. We can’t send someone lousy to be partnered with Investigator Eguchi; you both have similar skills and dulling them by partnering either of you with someone not worthy won’t help anything; it’ll intervene.” _

_ “I understand, ma’am, I just don’t think this is the best mission for me, it's hours away.” _

_ “Jasper, when you got injured you were five hours away from your home.” Her commander paused, taking into consideration her own words, and as she spoke again, her voice was much softer, empathetic, almost. It nearly made Jasper gag. “Is this because of your leg? Are you still dealing with that?” _

_ “I finished my physical therapy, ma’am, and I’ve gone through the consoling required.” What a stupid question, even if she didn;t dare to challenge it out loud. A bullet in her leg would never stop her from doing a case. She went through way worse than a bullet in her leg in the past _

_ Though, to give them the benefit of the doubt, they didn’t know that, and she’d rather keep it that way.“I’m fine, really. Trust me. I just don’t want to do this case.” _

_ “Too bad, you’re assigned.” The commander’s words sent a visible surge of shock throughout her body, and she felt terribly sorry for the chair beneath her by the way it creaked underneath her weight. _

_ “What?! You can’t do that!” Her desperate shout caused the other to turn with a killing glare, and despite her panic, her jaw snapped shut. _

_ “I can, Jasper. I know this is your biggest case yet, but you’ve been on double zero cases before. 007, to be exact!” A file was being smoothed between her fingers, and Jasper despised how she wasn’t even meeting her eye, rather admiring her painted nails pressing against the manila folder. “You’re perfectly capable of doing this mission, and any suspicion you aren’t might lead up to our own investigation on why you’re so hesitant. You wouldn’t want that, wasting both of our time, would you?” _

_ Jasper was silent for a moment, trying to reel her mind together and comprehend everything that she could’ve said to avoid this situation. Finally, lost for reason, she bowed her head, and she sighed. “No, ma’am.” _

_ “Excellent!” Her commander’s tone had changed drastically, her palms pressing against each other in glee, and if she was a more expressive individual, she would’ve been clapping, no doubt. However, they soon returned to their original position against the folder, pushing it across the desk where Jasper sat. “Here’s the file for the case. It has information about Investigator Eguchi. Make sure to study, you’re leaving in two days.” _

__

Of course, she couldn’t just leave the mission without consequences. If she gave up not even a day into the case, she’d be questioned, and there was no doubt her career as an officer would be questioned as well. Even if she didn’t like it, she was stuck.

Even with her door closed and muffling any outside noises, she could hear her partner exit the bathroom, a yawn escaping her lips that made Jasper grin. Although this was the most horrible situation she could be stuck in, she at least had been paired with someone who was by all means attractive; adorable even. She knew it was a long shot she would be interested in women, based on her luck, but it wouldn’t hurt to try to figure out, just to tease her. Her flirtation earlier had prompted an amusing reaction, and that was already a head start. People liked to be buttered up, she knew from experience, so this would at least help them stay on each other's good sides.

She fell against her bed, not even bothering to wrap her sheets around her. Her room was warm enough.

She sighed before flopping onto her side, her mind reeling with thoughts and emotions that she knew would deter her from being able to sleep for at least half an hour, maybe one.

She could do this, even if she didn’t want to. She just had to let that sink in.


	2. Stage Enter, Peridot

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jasper and Pearl are off to their very first step in the mission, investigating Peridot Olivine, a college student, after her arrest. However, what they get at the end of the day may be more than what they originally bargained for.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Second chapter is here! I just want to let you guys know, I'm a real sucker for foreshadowing so make sure to keep an eye out for that! 
> 
> Also Sugilite is SUCH a fun character to write! I have a chapter planned for her and Jasper in the future so get ready for more of their dumb shenanigans.

The first thing Jasper realized when she woke up was how  _ unbelievably  _ tired she was.

Night after night, she was plagued with nightmares, often waking up in the middle of the night drenched in her own sweat and thoughts. But last night was  _ horrible _ , waking up just about every half an hour. Finally, however, it was seven, and no matter how much she wanted to snuggle back in her comfortable blankets, it was time to get up. 

She usually woke up much earlier to go to the gym when it was the least crowded, but since their discussion last night regarding their safety, she ultimately decided to change her work outs to the afternoon and evenings. It was better that way so she didn’t have to wake Pearl up at four to inform her she was going to the gym. Depending on how long this mission lasted, she would definitely consider renting out some home equipment.

Her hair, tangled from tossing and turning, was swiftly pulled back and tied up, completely discarding the strands of hair that still cloaked the sides of her face. She didn’t feel the need to change just yet, but with the cold she knew was waiting outside her room, the burgundy robe hung up at her door was quickly slung onto her shoulders, and she slipped out the door.

The very first thing she picked up upon exiting her bedroom was the immediate scent of bacon. She was a  _ sucker _ for bacon, and her pace picked up as she raced to find the source of her mouth watering. The second thing she noticed was  _ humming _ ; gentle, soft and mindless humming that sounded oddly familiar. Upon actually stumbling into the kitchen, she raised an eyebrow at the sight in front of her.

Pearl, completely opposite of herself, was already seated at the table with her hair already fixed, already dressed and her breakfast spread out in front of her. If breakfast is what she could call it; all that was in front of her was a mug of what she could only assume was coffee and a cup of yogurt. Despite this, on the other side of the table was a  _ full _ plate of bacon, and one could only assume this was for Jasper. Glancing up from the phone in her hands, Pearl was unphased at her unreadiness, an enthusiastic grin immediately finding itself on her lips.

“Good morning, Jasper!” With tentive eyes, Jasper watched as a pale hand fell to the direction of the plate across from her to the kitchen counter, a fresh pot of coffee waiting. “I hope you don’t mind that I made breakfast! If you don’t like bacon and eggs I can always make something else-”

“No, no, it’s perfect-” The larger woman quickly defended the other woman's unbelievably kind action, though realizing she probably sounded much too desperate, she cleared her throat as she made her way to the table. “You made me breakfast. Thank you. Bacon is my favorite.”

The coffee was on the counter, but Jasper was far too hungry and excited for breakfast to care until maybe after she was halfway done with the meal. She pulled into the chair while simultaneously picking up the fork placed neatly next to the plate. “I saw the fridge last night, you completely packed it. You like to cook?”

Jasper had gone grocery shopping to help fill up the fridge, even if it washard not knowing exactly what to buy to satisfy the both of them. “I do, sorry if I went overboard.” Jasper was a woman of microwave meals and Chinese takeout, so her fridge at home was very...bare to say the least. The fridge  _ here _ however was packed to the brim, and yet somehow so neat. “I enjoy cooking, and I assumed it would be safer for us to eat inside instead of going out. Is that okay?”

“Pearl, I could literally  _ kiss _ you right now.” There was no hiding the bright red and the way Pearl glanced up from her mug with shock. It was  _ cute _ , and Jasper really wanted to see where she would draw the line with her flirtatious statements. She wasn’t going to make her uncomfortable, but she wouldn’t be lying if she said she really wanted to see if it was possible for someone’s entire face to turn a pure cherry red. 

Though the fact that Pearl had yet to dish up her own breakfast definitely raised an eyebrow. “Aren't you going to eat what you made?”

“Oh, no,” she coughed, still visibly recovering from Jasper’s earlier statement. “I’m vegan, actually.”

“Don’t you get sad when you’re cooking meat?”

Pearl shrugged. “No, it’s not like I have a choice. I have way too many intolerances and allergies, it’s just easier to avoid them all. I can’t eat dairy, gluten, wheat, fish, nuts and probably ten more pages.” 

Jasper took her first bite of bacon, immediately filled with approval. She gave a hum, fist brought up to her mouth before she let it fly out into the air with a kiss. Pearl was her new most favorite person in the world. “You’re missing out then. You’re a  _ great _ chef. But aren’t you everything deficient?”

“I feel just fine, so probably not.” Jasper knew that was probably a huge lie. Pearl looked no greater than a hundred pounds; getting tired easily, being constantly cold, she’d have to look out for that as they spent time together. “It’s not too hard, I just have to carry an EpiPen around. After we finish breakfast, we can go. I hope this lead at the sheriff’s office isn’t a bust.”

“Oh they found the right girl alright.” Pearl’s sudden look of confidence intrigued her, amusing to see such a serious expression coming from a woman currently struggling to reposition her tie. “They caught her in the act. Peridot Olivine is a part of Homeworld, and we’ve got plans to get information out of her. Poor girl though, barely eighteen, just about to graduate college and is probably going to spend the next few years in the slammer.”

“Oh please, she saw this coming.” The thinner woman scoffed, standing up from the table with the empty cup of yogurt in her hands. “She decided she would be a part of a criminal organization, she can deal with the consequences.”

Jasper bit her cheek as she finished up her bacon, though gave a curt nod in reply. Not everyone in Homeworld had a choice to actually join. She could definitely see situations where people may not be in control of whether they joined the organization or not, but she kept her mouth shut, intent to finish her breakfast and get ready. “I’ll get dressed and then I’ll be ready to go.”

For a reason unknown to her, Jasper took extra time in the mirror when she changed. She needed to make sure everything was perfect; her slacks (ultimately she was ordered to not wear her police uniform when going out during the day, it would only attract unneeded attention), her sharp eyeliner, she even made sure her hair was a bit more ruly than usual. She grinned in a rare burst of self confidence, tossing her head back and snagging the coat folded against her dresser. She looked ready to go.

Returning to the front room, the blonde woman was immediately intrigued at Pearl leaning against the doorframe, buttoning up a raven black coat that hung far past her thighs, turning her head up as she heard her reenter. Already, Jasper was used to the fast seconds that passed where the shorter seemed to pause in her tracks and stare, slight color falling onto her cheeks. 

“There’s-” Thin lips pressed together momentarily as she slipped her bag from the couch over her chest. “There’s a bus stop around a block away. From there, I’ve noted down the best route we can use to get to the sheriff’s station.”

“Great.” With the trails of her smirk beginning to fade, she felt like she owed the thinner some sort of chevalier to her for making her breakfast. With this determination, she made sure she was the first one to open the door. Quick pacing was good enough for her to reach the golden handle in time, Pearl’s fingers barely grazing against her knuckle as she pulled back in shock. The door was swiftly opened, and Jasper once again cherished the blush that was caught in the other’s expression.

“Thank you, Jasper.” Pearl’s comment, sincere and appreciative, sent the smirk across her lips into a full fledged grin. Closing and locking the door behind her, she immediately noticed that the other’s voice was much more hushed and quiet as they got outside, not even a few feet away from the front door. “Our next course of action depends on what happens at the station. But something that seems like it would be very helpful is a tour around town next. Scope the area, pinpoint hot spots for crime activity.”

"Alleyways are places we should keep an eye on. Alleyways and parks.” Just like Pearl, as they stepped onto the sidewalk her voice was immediately much quieter. Now that they were out in the open, there was no way to tell who was their enemy and who wasn’t. The woman across the street walking her dog could very well be a spy for Homeworld.

With this aspect of mind, a new thought was next for her to ponder. Did Homeworld already know about this mission? Yes, they tried as much as they could to keep this all under the radar and make things as secretive as possible, but Homeworld was  _ smart _ . It was a scary thought, but she wouldn’t be surprised if they already had their hands on their personal information.

The walk to the bus station wasn’t long at all, just over five minutes. And as soon as they stopped at it, Pearl was quick to remind Jasper of the stakes they had at hand. “Remember, Jasper, now that we’re around other people, we can’t talk about our...business. We don’t know whose going to be in that bus with us.”

“You act like I don’t do this for a living. I have the brawns, but I don’t completely lack the brains.” She rolled her eyes playfully, eyes glancing to where the bus was taking its sweet time pulling up to the stop. Considering the fail rate of this specific mission, Homeworld would waste no time trying to figure out more about their plan, find who they are and put a stop to their progress, their _lives_ even. With their luck, maybe they could push that off until they had hard clues. It wouldn’t surprise her if that happened; Pearl was far smarter than any investigator she was ever paired with. If anyone could solve this case, it was Pearl. 

The bus’s brakes came to a painfully loud halt, with both women forced to momentarily place their palms over their ears. Once it was completely motionless, however, it was time to go, and she could only pray that the bus was much warmer than it was outside.

Actually getting onto the bus was difficult, though definitely not surprising. Jasper was blessed with a towering height, making her much more intimidating and making it easier for her to pick up her exact type she was interested in. Unfortunately, it was also a curse, something she figured out when the top of her head smacked painfully against the top of the bus as she hauled herself up the stairs.

Glancing down the aisle, she was painfully aware of how crowded it was, not a single seat left available. The pair would have to spend the next half an hour standing. Being shoved around by fellow passengers. 

Great.

One hour and  _ five _ bus rides later, there was only a few blocks to the police station. It was just past a half after eight, yet Jasper was already exhausted. The buses were all crowded with people on their ways to their jobs, and the two had to endure sixty minutes of shoving from other passengers. At one point, one impatient man shoved the two out of his way, and Pearl would’ve shot forward and slammed her head against the pole in front of them hadn’t it been for Jasper quickly wrapping an arm over her waist and saving her from a trip to the emergency room.

“What an awful crowd!” After stepping off the final bus, Pearl wasted no time voicing her distress. “I nearly split my head open because of that rude man! Do you know how distracting that would’ve been for our mission?!”

“And how bad it would’ve been for your health period…?” It was no shock to her that Pearl’s concern was on the mission rather than the fact she could’ve gotten a traumatic brain injury no more than twenty minutes ago, even if she was vaguely concerned where her priorities were. “At least you ended up hitting your head on my stomach instead.” She was planning on following up the statement with something else, something among the lines of being surprised she didn’t crack her head on her rock-hard abs. However, the timing didn’t seem right, nor did she really have that prominent of abs in the first place. 

The town’s streets weren’t nearly as crowded as the bus was, or at least not as condensed. They passed a coffee shop on their way to the station, and she knew Pearl had said they shouldn’t eat out for most of their meals, but she prayed that was excluding an occasional stop for coffee.

“We’re taking the taxi route home.” The peach haired woman groaned, hands cupping over her cheeks. “I should just start wearing medical masks wherever we go! I’m going to get sick with the sheer amount of people who lack the decency to cough into their elbows!”

Jasper smiled, hand sympathetically raised to rest against her thin shoulders. “Would grabbing a cup of tea after this help?” Her amusement was quick to bounce back with the gentle nod she got in surprise. 

Soon enough, the familiar sight of the local sheriff’s office came into view, not too long of a trek after the last bus ride. She came here occasionally for work, reunitig with some of her colleagues. Meeting up with a few of them was definitely going to delay their investigation by a few minutes. 

Witht that being said, it wasn’t a surprise at all that Jasper was smothered in a crushing hug immediately upon opening the door to the station.

Of course, it wasn’t a surprise when as soon as the door to the office was opened, Jasper was suddenly smothered in a crushing hug.

“Sugilite!” With an exasperated cry, Jasper grinned as she was eventually released, happy to see that the taller’s world renown crushing hugs hadn’t disappeared since the last time she visited. “It’s been a few months!”

“A few months too long, Tiger!” Even to this day, Jasper was still amazed that someone could be so  _ tall _ , and that was coming from a six foot woman herself. Sugilite herself was a character in general, with the buttons on her uniform just about always crooked, her wild and free to lay past over her shoulders, immediately treating all she came across as a buddy from a few years back. She knew how to make a conference seem like a party. 

“You know I can’t drive two hours every day to see you. I have a job, too, y’know.” 

“Because of me!” 

With a pleasantly occupied roll of her eyes, Jasper sent a fist loosely spiraling towards the taller woman’s shoulders, acknowledging her defeat before turning her body towards Pearl, who was waiting a bit awkwardly at the front counter, obviously still at shock with the sheer height of Sugilite. “Sug, this is Lady Eguchi, whom I’m joined in holy matrimony with for the next five months.”

“It’s a pleasure, Pearlie!” Pearl flustered up at the introduction given, reaching out a hand for a shake. Sugilite, however, had a different idea in mind, and Pearl’s palm was clutched gently into her own, raised to her chin. Lips pressed into the pale skin, much to the thinner’s obvious shock. Classic Sugilite; uncontrollably flirtatious. “We already know who you are, it’s been nonstop chatter about you two’s mission! This mission gonna’ be solved as fast as the one you did back in Masaa, Lady Eguchi?”

“That’s the plan.” Jasper had to admit, when she realized she was first being paired with Pearl for this mission, she was definitely intimidated. She was well known even outside of the state, and for good reason. She was smart, and was renown for getting missions done quick and efficiently. “Are we on the same page, Jasper?” 

“Exactly. The sooner we get this done, the faster we can take down other bases, too. We’ll have to catch up, Sug, but I believe we have business to get to.” 

“Of course, I’ll show you where she is.” Sugilite, while obviously sad for their conversation to end, grinned before disappearing into the hallway, with the two quickly following.

Jasper completely forgot how much she missed this place, even if she only came here every two or three months at this point. This was where she was stationed when she first became a police officer, and the rushes of nostalgia that swept over her as they passed the carpeted halls made her come up to the decision she needed to visit at least once a week. 

Sugilite finally stopped at a door with a smooth, metal plaque above the frame reading ‘ _ Interrogation Room 009’.  _ “I’ll let you two handle the rest. Try to get some information out of her, okay?” 

“We’ll make sure to.” Jasper waved sluggishly back as the taller retreated back to the front desk, and turned to her partner. “You ready for this?”

“She’s eighteen. I’ve interrogated  _ murderers _ before.” Pearl scoffed, impatient to begin. 

With the two obviously ready, the door was opened, and interrogation began.

The room was small, no bigger than a bedroom and completely void of any decorations save for the table and chair that stood in the middle of the room. Seated in the chair, was a woman short in appearance, large circular frames slipped over her nose. It was a bit off-putting, seeing such a dorkish-looking woman barely into her adulthood handcuffed and investigated like a criminal. As strange as it was, both had definitely seen stranger.

“Finally! I’ve been waiting for like, an hour!” The girl stood as soon as they entered, and rather than being upset or scared, she sounded thankful, much to Jasper’s confusion.

“You realize we aren’t releasing you, right?” Jasper placed her bag on the table, right across from the short woman who somehow  _ rolled her eyes _ at the statement. “We don’t deal with Homeworld lightly, even if you’re sixteen.” 

“I’m eighteen!” Out of everything so far, being sat in an investigation room cuffed, being interrogated, her age being assumed was the one thing that pissed her off. This was a strange person indeed. “And I’m not a part of Homeworld! I was an  _ acquaintance  _ of someone who is a part of Homeworld!” 

“That’s what they always say.” Pearl seated herself down next to Jasper, visibly upset and irritated at the scoff that she got as a response. “Let’s not waste any more time. Why don’t you tell us your name?”

“Even though you already know them, sure.” She rolled her eyes and leaned back into the chair. “My name is Peridot Olivine. I’m eighteen years old, and go to school at the University of Tech and Engineering.” With that, her voice raised at least a few decibels, standing from her seat and slamming her hands against the poor table’s surface. “And I swear, I’m innocent!”

“Well, should we see what your reports say?” As Pearl leaned into the table, Jasper pulled out the folder packed inside the bag and slid it to the other; she was a part of this mission, but she couldn’t forget that Pearl was the investigator of the pair. There were some things that she needed to leave to Pearl, and these were one of those things.

“Peridot Olivine was caught December 11th along with an accomplice breaking into an abandoned warehouse with the intent to sell drugs. Peridot and an unknown suspect, who managed to escape, traveled to a spot where, according to police, a man who had been arrested earlier that day admitted he would be sneaking to in order to buy. Sounds totally innocent to me.”

“I know that sounds bad, but read the next part!”

“Police on the scene reported that Peridot did not resist arrest while the unknown suspect fled the scene. She was cooperative the entire time. No paraphernalia was found on her.”

“See, I’m not bad! Would a criminal just admit defeat!” Peridot’s voice, at this point, was exasperated and it was clear she was growing frustrated. “She didn’t even tell me she was a part of Homeworld, or that she sold drugs!”

Jasper was partially beginning to feel a bit more sympathetic, and now understood exactly why Peridot sounded so betrayed in the first place. She watched as Pearl placed the file back down against the table, her actions much more gentle than when she was practically leaning over the chair with a glare. “Can you explain a bit further please? Who are you talking about?”

The blonde nodded. “Her name is Lapis. Lapis Lazuli.” Peridot was hesitant to expose the other’s name, though upon realizing it was necessary to prove her innocence, she continued. “She goes to college at the local university, and said she was a part of a college club. She said we were going to meet another person from it because they needed to exchange… actually, she never said.” 

“Go on.” 

“I thought it was just a funny game…” With each passing minute, Peridot was slowly starting to grow much smaller than when they first started talking. Turning more hesitant, voice shrinking, she looked as if she was going to cry. It was clear she hadn’t been in this situation before. “I’ve never had a friend like her, after all...Or one  _ period _ . But just was she was breaking the window, and about to lift me up, two police cars suddenly pulled up and started screaming at us! They had their guns out, and Lapis just pushed me off her shoulders and sped off!” Her hands jerked up suddenly, showing the two iron clasps that were not doing any favors for the skin below.”All in one night, I lost my only friend, got arrested and now I’m about to receive drug charges! Oh, my mom’s going to be so pissed!”

Jasper and Pearl both shared a glance with each other, looking much more apologetic than earlier. The thin woman sighed heavily, pushing the report folder away. “It seems like we have a misunderstanding. You can’t be released yet, but when we get out of here we’re going to see what we can do about your situation, okay?”

“Thank you.” For once, Peridot smiled, a weak one albeit, but it was still a smile. For someone who had been thrown in a cell overnight, her attitude was quick to change. “So I can’t leave yet?”

“Not yet, unfortunately. You’re not in trouble, I just need to get all of the information you know about your friend’s...club.”

“She said it was a club, but that it was split into three different sections.” With both women immediately hooked, Peridot continued, “There was four once, but according to her someone went AWOL and ruined that section for everyone. The clubs are really uncreative with their names, Y Club, B Club and W Club. It’s really stupid, but apparently it’s spread out to other colleges, too.”

Pearl was intrigued by the information, considering it sounded  _ awfully  _ familiar, and even after Peridot paused in her words, the pen in her hand stayed manically scribbling against the notebook in her hand, good handwriting not in mind. “What faction was your friend?”

“Lapis?” Peridot recoiled, “She said she was in B Club."

“B Club?”  _ Not Yellow?  _ With another glance shared amongst each other, Jasper was beginning to grow confused. They were sent here over a Yellow case, not a Blue one. “Why would a Faction Blue member be all the way here?”

Immediately, she gasped. “Unless-”

“There’s more than just one base here…” Jasper thought that she was going to be more prepared for this mission, but as it turns out, she felt so confused. With their disturbed thoughts, silence engulfed the three women, leaving Peridot confused and extremely unnerved. 

Finally, after an entire minute of tense quietness, the blonde spoke. “Did I say something wrong?”

“Not at all.” Pearl was mumbling as she flipped the page to her notebook. “Did she give you any more information about the clubs?” 

“Not really.”

“Thank you, Peridot. You’ve helped us a lot.” Gathering up the papers back into her folder, Pearl reached her hand out to shake the shorter woman’s hand. Upon realizing, however, that Peridot was handcuffed and couldn’t shake back, she set it back with a face of red. “We’ll make sure they resolve this miscommunication and you get released as quickly as possible.” 

“They better, or else Sugilite’s getting an earful.” 

“Thank you.” A relieved Peridot smiled back at the two as they stood, and as Jasper and Pearl backed out into the hallway, Jasper was thankful that the interrogation left off on a good note. Did she come into this thinking she might get lunged at? Definitely.

“This makes things so much more interesting. Two bases?” As their way was made back towards the end of the hall, a pale hand swept through peach hair. She glanced down at the folder in her hands, her lip worried between her teeth as she glanced back to Jasper. She was about to say something else, but as they entered back to the front room, seeing Sugilite leaning back  _ dangerously _ in her office chair obviously made her anxious. “You’re going to split your head open if you continue using that chair improperly.”

The larger woman recoiled at the sudden voice, whipping her head around whilst simultaneously straightening out in her seat. “That didn’t take long at all! Time for me to take her to the slammer?”

“Far from that, actually.” As Jasper neared the front desk, she leaned against the surface, marble cooling to her warm skin. “She might be more innocent than we thought. Look into it, make sure she gets home soon, alright?”

“How things change. I wasn’t the one that arrested her, Smoky did. Should I make her apologize?”

“Yes. That poor girl is traumatized now.” Pearl, growing impatient, pressed her nail against the folder in her hands, letting it travel up and down the paper. Jasper could tell it was time to go. “Now, we have things we need to discuss. Big things, actually.”

“I see. Tiger, we need to meet up sometime. It’s been too long since we have.”

“That’s a given. I’ll make sure to call you soon.” Jasper grinned, and as much as she wanted to continue this talk, she didn’t want Pearl to scratch a hole through the folder. Her bag was slung over her shoulders, sending her fist playfully pounding against the counter as she pushed herself back up straight. “And look for a Lapis Lazuli, send a warrant out for her arrest. Tiny will tell you more about her.”

Her partner was visibly relieved as she finally slipped out the door, holding it open until the thinner followed through it. Another quick farewell to Sugilite was made, before they were back out onto the street. Not too much time passed, though it was much quieter now that people were situated at their jobs. With this, the peach haired woman let her voice raise slightly, but still leaned into the taller. “We’ve got a lot on our hands already, don’t we?”

“We do. Think you can still handle it?”

“Please!” She scoffed, failing to mask the grin that was steadily increasing due to their conversation, and it was spreading to Jasper as well. “It’s stressful, yes, but it’s nothing I can’t take!”

“I knew you’d say that. Now, is it time to stop by the coffee shop?”

“Alright. What does this new information tell us?” 

The coffee shop was cozy, which was an extreme understatement. The waft of coffee beans and vanilla was enough to soothe Jasper’s remaining anxieties from her nightmares that lingered, not to mention the portraits on the walls were interesting, weird interesting, but a good interesting that gave the shop its own unique aesthetic. With only one other pair of customers in the shop and on the complete other side of the building, Jasper and Pearl were granted the ability to speak quietly about their mission as they slipped away on their Americano and chai. 

“Well.” Pearl’s hands rested flat against the table, pausing only until the dulled rumbling of the blender at the front counter ceased. “If we both assumed correctly, this means there’s a Faction Yellow and a Faction Blue base nearby. The Faction Yellow one has a high chance of being a main one, but I’m not so sure about the Blue…”

“I think we both know by now that Homeworld works in strange ways.” It had been a while since she had even forced herself to willingly give a thought about Homeworld, but she couldn’t ignore the information she  _ knew _ in this case. Still, for something she thought she’d actually have some background knowledge about, she was just as lost as Pearl. For once, she was stumped, and they were only on their second day of the mission. “If there’s one thing we can know for sure, its that this might make things more difficult.”

“Do you suppose that’s why so many investigators have been having a difficult time in this case?” A thoughtful hum followed shortly after the steaming mug of chai was brought to Pearl’s lips, now finally cool enough to drink. She loosely locked her fingers together, resting her chin against the bridge it made. “Rather than working one case at a time, they were actually working on  _ two _ .”

“Which means the two factions might be teaming up to cause all this trouble for the investigators. Good catch.” Jasper swept a hand through the loose strand of hair that slipped past her ear, subconsciously eying the couple from afar, even if they were an older pair enjoying their morning out and about. It was rude for her to automatically assume they were enemies when they were probably just trying to enjoy their retirement. “We’ll have to make sure to report this. Maybe this will help us avoid suspicious activity in the future. Who knows, they might already know of this mission, let out our identities.”

“You really think they’re that ahead? If they’re letting inexperienced college students join along with their soldiers missions…” It seemed dumb, but then again some members of the organizaiton were bound ot have more liberty and freedom than others as they climbed up the caste pyramid. “Please, we’re already steps ahead of them. I don’t care if they know who they are. If they shoot me, we’ll just shoot them back! Figuratively. I really don’t want to actually shoot someone with my bare hands.” 

She paused. “Either way, nothing has changed. We’re still going to do this.”

Jasper grinned, leaning against the table. “You sure as hell we are.”


	3. Daylight in the Swamps

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jasper and Pearl have been on the mission for a week without any new information or leads. However, when they receive a call at the untimely hour of three in the morning, they may just get exactly what they need to really kick this thing off.

With week one of living together officially done, it was slowly becoming easier for Jasper to get used to new house rules and customs; the bathroom lock didn’t work, so knock before trying to open the door, the television was to be turned off the day they rehearsed those terrifying alert tests, try not to gawk at Pearl whenever she did something so stupidly adorable. They were still challenges sometimes, but she was getting used to it.

She was also getting used to being with Pearl in general. She hadn't had any roommates in four years, so getting used to living with another person was challenging, especially when the other person was a character like Pearl was. It made her more aware of her surroundings as she did the best she could to pick up after herself, and it also made her fear the evening time of day when she would be stalked down by the other just so Pearl could remind her that dinner was ready and skipping meals was not going to cut it for her. It was definitely a change; eight days ago she was eating crackers and string cheese for dinner and now she was being forced to eat _delicious_ homecooked meals. She definitely didn't mind the change.

Since their meeting with Peridot six days ago, Jasper and Pearl spent their time in town, searching for anything that could help them in their case. While they were at home, they managed to put what the day had brung together, and Jasper was getting more and more impressed at the dozens of connections and ideas Pearl had every night. No wonder she had such a good track record.

What shocked her the most was the lack of any danger; no brick to the window, no waking up to the house on fire, nothing suspicious at all. Either she and Pearl were doing really great at keeping their location disclosed, or Homeworld was taking their sweet time creating something disastrous for the pair. She prayed with all her might that it was the earlier.

“I just don’t know what she’s talking about!” Living with each other also meant learning more about each other every day. They learned each other’s routines, what times they took their showers, and other tid-bits that came out of their conversations. Pearl now knew about what types of energy drinks contained the best nutritional value and what exercises she needed to do in order to get smoldering guns like Jasper, and vice versa with Jasper with what the difference was between a violin and a fiddle and the correct order to create the perfect cup of tea.

Frustrations were also brought up, and from where they sat back at the kitchen, this time with chicken for Jasper and salad for Pearl, it was clear the thinner of the two was ready to retire to bed and sleep her anger off. 

“I mean, I understand her concern, I  _ really _ do.” Finishing up her meal, poking at the remains of the crotons in the bowl, Pearl rested her palm against her temple, her body leaning against the table. With someone who prided herself with her good posture, this was a concerning sign. “But why does she care? She’s married to  _ Greg _ , not me!”

Jasper hadn’t met Rose yet, though by Pearl’s concerns and rants, she knew someone like her was bound to be a bit overbearing at times. She hadn’t said anything yet specifically, but if her guess was right, she could assume Pearl fell a bit head over heels for the woman. Maybe they had something together at one point? “She’s the director of the company’s side of the mission, correct? She’s just concerned about the mission.”

“But she isn’t trying to force you to take self defense classes!” Pearl’s fork hit the table with more force than intended, napkin now stained a beautiful Italian dressing yellow.”She acts like I can’t take care of myself! Has she even seen my records?”

Jasper rolled her eyes as she leaned over to grab the other’s bowl. She was successful a few days ago in allowing Pearlto let her help with the dishes, which was something she was still proud of. “I’ve seen your records. You have a higher success rate than any other investigator I’ve seen in your life. It’s probably because you’re…” Her voice trailed off. The rest of the answer was one Pearl would be beyond pissed to hear, so instead, she shook her head, standing from her chair and making a beeline to the sink. “Nevermind.”

“What?”

“Nothing. I’m going to put the dishes away.” Her heart dropped at the sound of a chair being pushed from the table behind her. She was caught in this situation, and now there was no getting out of it.

“What were you going to say?!” Pearl was right behind her now, hand placed over her hips. She could practically feel her hot breath against her shoulder, even when she bent over to fill the sink with suds and warm water. “I want to know why she doesn’t trust me!”

“Fine, fine.” The faucet was cut off once she was sure there was enough water for the dishes to soak, taking her sweet time turning around, back still pressed against the counter. She was prepared to get either slapped or punched, and she was a bit afraid of it, even if she knew it probably wouldn’t hurt. “I mean, you’re not exactly...big.”

“What do you mean?”

“Okay, let’s put this into perspective.” She pushed away from the counter, allowing herself to stand at her full height of six-foot-six. She loved being tall; asides from the torture of being forced to sit in the back seat and the fear of wearing any dresses in public, it came with its perks. To her, being intimidating was one of them. “Imagine I’m a deranged stranger trying to rob you, or even someone planning with Homeworld. I’m over six foot, and around two-hundred fifty pounds. What are you, five-foot six? Seven?”

Pearl huffed. “Five-foot four. Ninety-five pounds.”

“Yeah, okay.” That certainly didn’t help her point, and she only stepped closer to Pearl, towering over her by over a foot. Watching Pearl’s gaze turn from confident to a bit astonished was amusing. “Do you see how easy it is to overpower you? Someone doesn’t have to be shorter than you, they just have to weigh more and have more muscle. I hate to break it to you, but that’s practically everyone over the age of thirteen.”

“Please!” With the last statement obviously teasing but igniting the fire within the peach haired woman, Jasper knew she succeeded in getting her worked up. Now, she’d just have to prove to her what she meant, and maybe then Pearl would actually take it into consideration. “I know how to punch and fight! It doesn’t matter at all whether or not I’m...dainty.”

“Dainty?” Jasper snorted. “If you really think you can take me on, why don’t you try?”

“Excuse me?”

“You’re confident you can take me down, right?” She scoffed mincingly as she crossed her arms over her chest, resting her body against the kitchen counter and watching the peach haired woman’s expression falter for a moment. “I want to see if you really can. So why don’t we try?”

“I don’t need to prove my strength to you.” Pearl seemed much more uncertain this time, obviously unsure with the aspect of  _ actually _ putting her words to the test. However, she genuinely was considering her options, and Jasper couldn't be happier from that. “Fine, I accept your challenge. When?”

Rather than being given a verbal response, within not even a second of Pearl’s words, she was suddenly snatched from the ground, followed by a frightened squeal. 

“Jasper!” With Pearl slung like a sack of potatoes over her shoulder, carefully of course, the cop placed one firm hand against a thin waist, while the other one cupped over her back to ensure she wouldn’t fall out of her grip. She grinned as she felt hands grip at the fabric across her back, apparently trying to rip it off her. “You didn’t give me time to prepare!”

Even as the other squirmed in her grip, trying to buck her way out of her reach, Jasper still had to use little of her strength to keep Pearl contained. “In a real situation you won’t have time to prepare. Unless you can beat me before we get to my room, I win.” She took her sweet time lumbering across the kitchen, just to tease Pearl. This was meant to be a lesson for Pearl, but even she had to admit that this was fun.

Pearl, she also had to admit, wasn’t a person who gave up easily, with fist after fist pummeling harmlessly against her back. But Jasper’s grip was too precise, there was no way Pearl would escape unless the heavens above dropped a miracle from above.

And apparently, that’s what they decided to do.

Pearl was sporadically kicking her legs aimlessly in the air, an useless attempt to get away. However, as if the gods decided to grant her a miracle, her left heel hooked into Jasper’s nose with a surprised bawl.  _ Hard.  _ Immediately, the hands over Pearl’s waist released, allowing her to snake to the ground with nothing more than a squeak of surprise as Jasper tended to her hurting nose. Her posture bent, she confirmed that she wasn’t bleeding, however confusion and daze from the injury wore to a mellow ache, and once more Jasper put her mind to the former pursuit. When she whipped her head around, she watched the expression on Pearl’s face turn from victory to pure horror, immediately throwing herself onto her feet and sprinting to the safety of her own room.

Watching Jasper speed after her was like watching a tiger chase a deer; in high school Jasper broke many records being on the track team, and while she had no doubts Pearl had her own skill, she simply wasn’t made for physical extersion.

It didn’t take long at all for Jasper to catch up to her, her legs were longer, she was trained, and most importantly Jasper was the one that was in shape and athletic. She humored Pearl though, slowing down just barely as she continued to close the space between them. Finally, she launched into the air, slamming into the shorter as she let out a startled shriek and both women tumbled to the ground in a mess of limbs. 

The fight pursued even as they crashed into the floor. It wasn’t a hard fight, Jasper experienced little to no struggle at all asides from actually pulling away from Pearl enough to flip off the carpet. Two thin wrists were easily pinned above her head with one hand, straddled over her stomach and with a strained puff of breath, Jasper grinned in victory. Despite her failure, Pearl wasn’t ready to give up just yet. The flailing underneath her didn’t stop for a whole minute, though eventually, her victim stilled. Realizing her efforts were going nowhere, she finally came to a halt. Exhausted and trying to catch her breath, she sent a deathly glare to the woman above her. “None of that was fair!”

“This would’ve been the exact way things went if this was real. In fact, I went easy on you.” They were playing a fun game of cat and mouse, but she also didn’t want to accidentally bruise the other. So she softened the grip against her wrists, letting her free hand slyly rest right to the side of Pearl’s neck. 

She leaned in a bit under careful weight, making sure she wasn’t squishing Pearl underneath her, enough so that her hand subconsciously brushed back against a pale cheek as she rearranged to support herself. Her voice soft, she finished. “Maybe this will make you reconsider not taking Rose’s offer for self defense classes.”

Only then did she realize how close the two were. With Jasper on top, their bodies were now only inches away from each other, blonde hair falling over her shoulders and surrounding them like drapery. From where she was, she could see every detail about Pearl; the light dusting of freckles under her eyes, the even heavier mask of red that very much complimented her peach hair. Pearl had a naturally beautiful complexion, and being this close, with Pearl’s mouth subconsciously agape, really made her pause. She just wanted to-

Jasper pulled herself off of Pearl finally, releasing her wrists and pulling herself off of the ground, as fell as leaving a hand out for the other to take. “I-I think it’s around time you usually go to bed, right?” She coughed into the crook of her elbow as she felt a hand wrap around her wrist, with Pearl pulling herself up with this aid. “Tomorrow morning we can continue this discussion. Sorry about all of this. You might wake up sore tomorrow.”

“Please, you barely even scratched me!” Pearl paused for just a moment after, however. “But I’ll take an Advil, just in case.”

Jasper wasn’t unused to night terrors when she slept, that was as clear as day, so she was surprised when she didn’t wake up at least twice by the time three hit the clock that night. They were still frightening, and she stressed about having to deal with them, but it seems like tonight the forces above were granting her a decent night's sleep. 

However, to make up for the lack of nightmares, she woke up with an  _ incredible _ thirst, ultimately forcing her out of her sheets no matter how cold and uninviting everything but her bed was. Slipping on her robe, she stumbled out of her room to fetch a cup of water.

The house they were stationed in for this mission was tiny, a simple one story with enough room to allow the two women their privacy. They had their own space, but they still had to be considerate for each other. They couldn't just blast their music through a speaker or have the television cranked to the max dial while the other was trying to focus. It was rather easy to pick up different sounds in the house. 

Which was why Jasper paused just down the hallway, ceasing her footsteps to close in what she heard. It was from Pearl’s room, and it sounded like someone was...struggling? Stumbling over the ground, more like. Not in the ‘the wind is acting up and the house is shaking a bit’ type of way, but ‘I’m in the middle of a fight with someone who snuck into my bedroom at three in the morning’. 

She knew that that was something most likely not happening, but given their circumstances and the lack of any strange occurrences so far, Jasper’s worries were understandable. 

Disregarding her thirst, her feet wasted no time pushing her body across the hallway, ready to tackle down whoever decided to break into their house at three in the morning. Barely registering when her hand tore across the doorknob and threw the door open, she bundled her fists, ready to fight.

However, there was no stranger in the room trying to chokehold the other like she expected. In fact, the only danger she could see was the buttons of Pearl’s slacks she was desperately trying to tighten. She didn’t mean to scare Pearl, but with reacting to the door suddenly being barged open, Pearl shrieked, and tumbled over the bed. 

“Are you okay?” She didn’t need an answer as Pearl’s head popped up from the other side of the bed, peach hair thoroughly ruffled and her expression that of excitement and still a bit of terror from the scare. “What are you doing? It’s three in the morning!”

Jumping off from the ground, now successful with dressing herself, Pearl took a minute to respond. But when she did, her words were choppy and out of breath, indicating she should’ve spent at least a few more minutes on the ground to let herself breath. “They need us! Right now!”

“Who?”

“The sheriff’s department!” Pearl pointed to her phone on the bed, slung without characteristic care. Pearl was tiny compared to her, but Jasper genuinely did see her life flash before her eyes as the shorter  _ rammed _ her way at full speed, squeezing herself out of the room and still shouting as she burst down the hall at record speed. “They found a big lead! We need to go  _ now! _ ”

With tiredness beginning to replace with adrenaline and recovering from the shock of witnessing Pearl actually run faster than five miles an hour, she began to follow her footsteps, rushing out of Pearl’s room in turn to quickly change into her uniform. 

As she hurried to actually put on her clothes with some sort of accuracy, even with the door shut she could hear Pearl’s shuffling. There was one point where she nearly burst outside without a shirt after a particularly loud crash, but Pearl’s shout of reassurance right after gave her peace that at least Pearl was alright. Whatever she ran into (which ended up being the coat hanger), maybe not.

Jasper was no stranger to breaking records, she was breaking a new record practically everyday in high school. However, she was actually impressed with how fast she was able to get dressed and tie her hair away from her face. If she was in a rush like this all the time, she could slip in fifteen extra minutes of sleep every morning.

When she emerged all ready to go (as much as she could be without the leisure time to put on nothing more than eyeliner), Pearl was waiting right there,  _ right in front of her door _ , staring intently up at as soon as the door opened.

“Officer Sugilite will be picking us up and taking us to the scene. She’s down the road.” The calm demeanor didn’t last long, because soon enough Pearl was gripping at her bicep, making her stumble along with Pearl as she raced towards the door before actually picking up her feet as well. “They found a car! A license plate! We’ve got another suspect!”

Jasper could barely get her response out before Pearl cranked open the door, greeting thw two with the chilly bite of the three in the morning cold. At this point, she had to jog in order to keep up with Pearl sprinting down the street.

Despite being almost unbearably cold, the morning was still breathtaking. The sky was a pretty violet, blotted with clouds that were beginning to lighten a shade up from gray. It was still dark, and it would be a few hours before the sun would rise, but things felt tranquil. She just hoped it would bump up a degree or two by the time they arrived at their destination.

“They pulled the car over at Patterson.” Trying to catch her breath, posture acutely slumped, Pearl did the best she could to catch Jasper up with the information relayed to her. “The plate showed up to  _ no one! _ They think it’s one of Homeworld’s.”

“First off,  _ breath _ .” The other, as far as she knew, didn’t have asthma, and she was thankful for that fact because even without anything blocking her airways Pearl looked in desparate need of an inhaler. Once Pearl’s breathing was as steady as it would get, she continued. “Second off, I wouldn’t be surprised if it is good ol’ HW’s. I’ve heard their tricks, carrying out deals out at night and in the back roads.” Homeworld was a very complicated empire in its concept. Split into four, and while there were some duties they needed to carry out with privacy, like drug deals, they sure didn’t mind carrying out their assassinations in front of crowds.

“Officer Sardonyx and Smoky are already out there, the driver is apprehended. Now they’re just waiting for us and Sugilite to search the car.” As if on cue, a certain car turned into the street, the shiny  _ Ocean Town Police Department  _ sticker on its ivory side glistening as it passed the street lights. Pearl visibly relaxed as the car pulled closer to the curb. “Who knows what could be in that car! Reports, stash, plans? This could be such a big step in the case!”

“Let’s hope. Seems like this might be a lead.” 

“Lead? That’s an understatement!” Pearl’s giddiness was increasing again, and as the two shuffled their way into the back seat of the police car, Jasper could see her body vaguely rocking back and forth. There were ticks that that the cop found absolutely adorable from the pale woman; the gentle humming that filled the quietness of the house, the way every so often she’d raise her eyebrows and widen her eyes idly for a moment before returning to normal, it was all a part of her, and it was something now she closely studied the other for.

“Well, if it isn’t the tiger and tiger tamer, it’s a pleasure again!” Jasper wasn’t used to sitting in the back seat, and even pushed up against the window as much as she could, their elbows nearly grazed together, having to tilt her head in order to not hit the car’s roof. “You guys have a fun week?” 

“It’s about to get better, that’s for sure.” After strapping in her seat belt, the tall woman playfully rammed her elbow into Pearl’s shoulder, who incorporated it back with as much force as she could; which to be honest wasn’t a lot at all. 

“Oh, I bet. Hey Pearlie.” The woman in the front seat grinned. “Have you ever been in a police car before?”

“I was a straight A student, had a curfew of nine and a rigorous extra-curriculum schedule. I never had the time to do anything illegal enough to be put in one.” At this point, she was shifting in her seat, her excitement uncontainable. When she took a glance to her left, she could see a pale hand clenching and unclenching against the leather. “Why?”

“Because when you’re not in here with cuffs behind your back, it’s a hell lot of fun!” Upon her words, a sudden nuclear of reds and blues began right from the top of the car, and Jasper couldn’t help but shake her head with a scoff. Of course Sugilite would flaunt off her lights. She had been a police officer longer since before Jasper even moved away from her old home, yet she still brightened at the aspect of showing off her car’s goods. If she was feeling particularly playful, she might even switch on the sirens.

And just like that, a bird-like screeching, high pitched thing of an alarm began its goal to wake up the entire city, thankfully muffled due to the barrier of iron and metal between them. So this  _ was _ an emergency logically, considering they had officers waiting for them at the scene of a crime, but when truth came to shove, she knew Sugilite only turned them on to impress Pearl. With the sleep now releasing her from its terror, she laughed at the display, and comradely shoved her fist up to the roof of the car. “Floor it!”

Considering she literally did tell her fellow officer to tear rubber on the road, she should’ve been much more prepared for when the car lurched forward, nearly sending poor Pearl, still in the process of getting her seatbelt buckled, into the seat ahead of her. It wouldn’t be more than ten minutes until they were finally there; hand in hand with their very first lead in the middle. The taste of victory on her tongue was immaculate.

“At this speed, we should get to the others in about ten minutes.” From the front mirror’s reflection, Jasper spotted Sugilite’s covered eyes staring intently at the road ahead, though with her eyebrows quirked and her lips failing to conceal an amused grin, it was clear she was expecting a second comment of wonder and that’s exactly what she got.

“But Patterson Road is twenty-five minutes away!”

“Not when you’re going sixty-five miles an hour, baby!” Jasper, so far, lost count of the nicknames that came from Sugilite.  _ Babe, Darling, Sugar,  _ and she could still visibly remember the face of their supervisor when she had come to visit the station, only to be greeted with the woman leaning dangerously back in her chair, cup of Joe in her hand and a  _ “Hey, Little Man.” _

She hasn’t returned since.

The siren was blaring outside, the reds and blues that stood for freedom unless they were flashing behind you beginning to ache her eyes that had yet to catch up with the rest of her body. Despite her body still half crawling in the depths of sleep, the deep gray sky, pale stars beginning to creep their way back under the horizon, were beautiful to look at. The town would be beginning to rise soon, however with the police car racing down the street, she wouldn’t be surprised if they were already wide awake.

“This is so exciting! I’ve woken up to emergency meetups on previous cases, but not at three in the morning!” Jasper knew Pearl’s excitement-- at least the initial excitement-- would be short lived; just like every cop and investigator on cases like these, days would soon turn into trying to connect files together, fill in blanks without help they needed, meeting hole after hole and their nights would turn sleepless, living on coffee and energy drinks and soon enough they’d be trading a kidney for a full three hours of sleep. 

But then again, Pearl was well known for being able to tackle missions with a pair of boots and an iron fist. If she was really as good as her files said, then maybe her hopes of sometimes getting at least an hour of sleep were actually somehow realistic.

“You’re going to have to get used to three in the morning interruptions then, Detective. The highest case I’ve been on is a zero-fifteen. Took two months and half of the nights we were woken up at two.”

“First off, I’m an  _ investigator _ , not a detective. I can’t make arrests nor do I work with just the police. Second, I know.” Pearl rolled her eyes, though with obvious playfulness in her expression, and leaned back into her seat. “I’ve been on a zero-eight. In that month I pulled about twenty-three all nighters.”

“A month for a zero-eight? They weren’t kidding when they said they were bringing in the best person they knew for this case. From a local based business too, you’ll have all three factions down within the end of next week.”

“That’s impossible, but nice to think about.” With her finger brushing just above her philtrum, the peach haired woman was able to mask the smile of pride from Sugilite. However, Jasper could see it clear as day, and the confidence demonstrated from her partner admittedly gave her her own boost of pride. “This is a complicated chain of cases. We have to tackle one base at a time and hope we’re taking them down faster than they’re building them. I’d say we have about seven months to get this base down. I’ve just begun to scrape the surface really, but with this lead I’m sure its the shove we need to really kick this all off.”

Of course, they didn’t even know if this car was related to their mission yet, even if the chances at this point were likely. Even if it wasn’t, she couldn’t be disappointed; they’d still be catching a criminal. “Let’s hope.”

“I’m cheering you two on.” Sugilite grinned. “If you really want me to help give you guys positive reinforcement-” 

“You’re going to ask for Pearl’s number, aren’t you?”

“Yep.” 

The rest of the ride was mostly silent after the first set of cheers from her fellow cop as a piece of paper was slipped into her cupholder. She was  _ not  _ expecting Sugilite to be Pearl’s type, but she wouldn’t judge her-- of course, that didn’t mean she wouldn’t be teased when they returned home.

It was only ten minutes before the car began to slow, the trio greeted with more flashing lights and three more figures standing out to the side of the road.

“There it is!” Pearl’s excitement was fit to burst as the car was pulled to a complete stop and the engine was eventually shut off. The only car that wasn’t obviously belonging to the police department was old, clearly a few years past its time of retirement. The orange do was beginning to fade, and one of the headlights, even with the car off, was stuck on; dimmed, of course. Could Homeworld, a country --possibly an  _ international--  _ wide criminal empire, really be dependent on resources like this? With a sigh, she was beginning to think this could be a false alarm. 

Still, her seatbelt was unhooked, grateful for the fresh air that greeted her once she opened the door. With new space to stretch, her arms were pulled over her head. On their way home, she was definitely going to take the front seat.

The three other officers on the scene were those she already recognized; Officer Sardonyx and Smoky, even Deputy Sunstone was leaning against the hood of the old car, sparking a conversation with her coworkers. However, with the presence of their new arrivals, her posture straightened, effectively ending the conversation and prompting the others to stop and turn their heads. 

“Well, if it isn’t Officer Zahri!” Sardonyx's friendly greeting evoked a sheepish smile from the slightly shorter woman as she swept a hand across the top of her head, suddenly conscious of how messy she probably looked given the fact she took five minutes to get ready. She couldn't exactly get into the shower after an emergency call at the Devil’s hour. “You’re right on time!”

“Yes, considering we got the notice at three in the morning.” Pearl finally freed herself from the car, nearly running into Jasper as she struggled to catch up to the conversation. She could only roll her eyes, a snort reberevated in her throat as her playful jab to the investigator’s shoulder was met back with some force. “What was in the car?”

“We don’t know yet, we were waiting for the actual investigator to get here.” Smoky pressed their knuckles against the hood of the car, effectively gathering the dust before wiping the digits against their own front pocket. They gave a playful tsk in the car’s condition, before turning their attention back to Pearl with a soft bow of her head. “Miss Eguchi, we’re all flattered.”

“Pearl, please.” With her voice wavering, excitement was clearly brewing inside the thin woman even as the tiredness of morning was trying to grab at anything not shielded by ablessed serving of caffiene. “You haven’t looked inside of it yet?"

“We just got the warrant to search it. While we could’ve ripped it from the inside out already…” Sardonyx, based on the squirmy grin refusing to let go of her lips, was having just as hard a time as everybody else containing her excitement. How pathetic would it be if they were all getting so worked up for nothing only to be greeted with a false alarm? “...But this technically is your case. So, would you like to do the honors?”

With Sugilite carelessly tossing a bulky flashlight in her direction, thankfully caught, it was impossible for her to refuse; she didn’t think she’d ever seen Pearl move so fast, even during their spar earlier. Cautiously observing the door of the vehicle for a minute, she raised her fingers along the rust of the door handle, though strictly avoiding direct contact with it. 

“What, are you scared to open the door or something?” Jasper knew the words would play her on with the competitive tone of them, and much to her expectations, the investigator whipped her head back, tongue stuck out with a glare. 

After the short bout of teasing, Pearl’s grip against the handle was tightened, sleeve of her shift covering her palm, and with a low albeit there pop, the door to the back seat opened. She fumbled with the flashlight for a minute, unable to turn its bulb on, but thankfully, away from her face, the stream of light was soon showering the backseat in its gleam, and with no further hesitation she lowered her head to peer inside the car.

“This car needs a good clean.” Peering in as she rested her elbow against the car’s roof, Jasper watched the particles of dust that danced as the flashlight bid them light, aimless in their travel and tiny, yet there so much it felt like a challenge breathing. “There’s so much dust, and what on Earth is that stain right there? We should just scrape the car altogether!” 

“Pearl.” 

“Right, sorry.” She couldn’t be surprised that Pearl, someone who had an entire shelf dedicated to cleaning supplies, would get a bit distracted by the sheer amount of dirt that layered the car. However, Pearl reached down after forcing a short gust of breath past her teeth. “Ha! I found something!” She set the flashlight down onto the seat, and now with both hands available, bent forward to pick up something from the car floor. When she straightened herself back out, she had a set of colorful files in her arms, soon relayed to Jasper.

After setting the files on the roof, Jasper leaned in again to observe as her partner continued in her search. “Is it just more folders?”

“A few yes.” Pearl backed away from the seat with a few more files under her arm, grabbling out for Jasper’s bicep that she gifted right away. After helping her back to her feet, the peach haired woman turned back to the officers awaiting more information. “There’s a baggie of something back there, and some weapons I don’t want to touch.”

“Jeez, who needs to stow away so many papers on a drug run?” Smoky grabbed at the stack of folder accumulated on the car’s roof, and while they didn’t actually grab any of the documents inside, their fingers flipped their merry way through the colorful files. “What’d you say? This look like a good sign to you?”

“Definitely.” The thinnest of the group glanced down to Sardonyx’s ride, assuming that was where the criminal in question was being detained. “No one’s this prepared on a drug run unless they’re on more than just one or part of a larger organization. I really was losing hope that this was Homeworld, but now-”

“Now we know it is.” Jasper snatched the folder from the top of the stack, guiding her palm inside of the sheet. She flicked open one of the folds, the mess of papers nearly bursting out with just a single staple holding them together. Her eyes scanned the papers desperately for a moment, before finding exactly what she was looking for; on the top of the very first page, inked into the white sheet was a diamond, split into four parts; white, yellow, blue, and pink. She flipped the folder around, displaying it to Pearl. “Looks like we’ve got a long night ahead of us.”

Pearl turned to Sugilite, before gathering the rest of the folders abandoned at the car. “Thank you so much for picking us up. We’re going to be extremely busy now.”

“Right. I’ll get you two home in no time. You gonna have enough time to give me a call?” 

Pearl rolled her eyes, but despite this she smiled. “I suppose.” 

As they were making their way back to the car, Jasper leaned in, a soft whisper hushed into Pearl’s ears. “I never knew Sug’ was your type. Are you really going to plan something with her?” 

“Maybe.” The shorter really did think for a moment, tossing her back a grin. “I haven’t had any luck for the past twenty-two years. Might as well see where this goes.’"

Jasper didn’t think getting home would be boring, but boring was definitely the opposite of what coming back home was.

Before the door could even be shut, Pearl was sprinting to the kitchen, barely able to keep all of the folders in her arms.

“I’ll get the coffee pot going! Get the whiteboard in my room and the packet of dry erase markers in my dresser!” Uncharacteristically messy of Pearl, she pushed all of the papers across the table. Pearl was usually the first to remind Jasper to remove her shoes when they arrived back to the house, but this time  _ she _ was the one that forgot. She would’ve rolled her eyes hadn't she had her own things to do.

It was unbelievable how prepared Pearl came. Being one of the first times she strayed into her bedroom, she never had time before to look around.

She wasn’t surprised at all to see a shelf of medals on top of her desk when she walked in.  _ Valedictorian, 2014 Math Olympics Champion _ , none of them came as a surprise. What she did think was strange was the zero mention of ballet anywhere in her room. She definitely saw Pearl as the ballerina type, especially with how flexible she was and the mindless switches from first to second position she caught her doing. Maybe she’d ask about it later.

Next to the picture was a black necklace stand, and laid around it was a string of pearls, polished and very much real. It was a perfect piece of jewelry for her to have considering her name  _ was _ Pearl. She never thought about getting herself a pair of jasper earrings, nor has anyone ever thought about gifting her some either.

“Jasper!”

She got way too far off track for their circumstance, though thankfully the whiteboard and markers were not hard to find. Gathered in her hands quickly, even from Pearl’s room she could hear the other’s fumbling from the kitchen, as well as the tortured cries from the coffee maker.

“I hope you slept alright.” By the time Jasper made it back to the kitchen, Pearl had given up on her struggle with the machine, displaying the ‘ERROR’ message on its tiny display screen, instead returning to the table and flattening out the papers that stuck up from their respective holders, completely covering every inch of the table. “Because we aren’t going back to bed for the next six hours!”

“Or have any coffee, as it looks like.” At least now they knew exactly how many punches to its buttons it took to overwhelm the coffee machine. “I have energy drinks in the fridge, though.”

“No, thank you.” She was convinced Pearl didn’t actually comprehend a single word she said with the plastic wrap from the whiteboard standing no chance to her hands, discarded onto the floor quickly after being pried from its surface. “Fizzy drinks don’t feel right going down my throat.”

“They’re the coffee kind. They have more caffeine than sugar.”

“Milk.” The thinner popped the cap off of the marker in her hands, barely granting Jasper a quick glance. “Do they have milk in them?”

“No-” She rotated the can in her left palm to read the nutrition label. “Yes.”

“Then I can’t have it, Unless you want me to spend the next two days curled up in bed.” She forgot about Pearl's very narrow diet, embarrassment apparent on her cheeks. She was about to apologize when Pearl suddenly groaned, head forcefully coming down to meet the table’s surface. 

“What’s wrong?”

“Oh, come on!” The pale investigator reached to the whiteboard, and then to the files. “All of these files are bound to have more information than we can write on such a small whiteboard! How did I become so unprepared!”

The files covered the entire surface of the table, while the whiteboard could easily fit inside Jasper’s hands. “It’s okay, we can use paper, too.”

“But we can’t!” Pearl rose from her chair, hands rising to massage her scalp. “We’re going to have to change what we write as we learn more and connect ideas together! A piece of paper will never be large enough, we have to go get a better whiteboard!”

“A better one?” Jasper glanced at the clock, seeing that it was four in the morning, most stores that sold white boards were bound to be closed. “Pearl, it’s four in the morning! We don’t even have a car or truck to bring it back!”

“We’ll have to call an Uber who drives a truck, then!”

“It’s going to be impossible to find an Uber with a truck right now!”

Despite her arguments, her words were immediately discarded as Pearl rushed to the still beaten coat hanger from early, clutching two jackets from the floor and tossing her’s to Jasper. Draping it over her shoulders, she pulled her phone from her slacks's pocket, comically ripping it away from her face as the screen greeted her with brightness way too strong for the time of morning. “Come on!”

“Pearl-” However, it seemed like she wouldn’t have any other choice but to follow the other, and she could only watch as she broke into yet another frenzy, simultaneously shoving an arm into the oversized sleeve of her coat.

This was silly and a waste of time, Jasper knew. They’d never find a ride at this time of the day, or even a store that was even open. They’d be coming back inside half an hour later, shivering and without a ride.

Still, it would be entertaining and probably one of the last light-hearted moments they’d have in days. She would let herself indulge.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> just to remind you guys interaction and comments really motivate me, so if you're feeling nice i will love you forever


	4. Come On, Jasper, Get Yer Gun

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The two travel to Beach City to meet with Garnet, where Pearl announces her farfetched plan on how to move the mission forward.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Had this chapter edited and then my drive deleted it so this bad boy is corrected with Grammarly.
> 
> Edit: Fuck Grammarly I’m going over this myself tomorrow

The hour it took to find a suitable ride and find a store nearby that was open at the time was spent mostly in failure. They tracked down many riding apps, mini-marts, street stores, but it was no use. 

However, Pearl refused to give up, and she could barely believe it when two hours later they arrived home, wheeling in a ten by four whiteboard that barely fit through the door and stayed miraculously clean on its way back from the store.

Pearl was quick to express her anger at the two hours of studying they had lost and insisted they start right away despite the time they deserved to rest for even just a few hours. Sitting down at the table, observing all of the files against the table, she really wondered if it was even needed to buy a whiteboard that big.

As it turns out, they needed to be thankful it was double-sided.

Two dried markers, four energy drinks and four hours later, Pearl and Jasper had filled both sides of the whiteboard to its borders. They didn’t even pause until the trickling of sunlight through the blinds of the living room caught them both off guard.

“We’ve still got a few more files to go through…” Pearl glanced at the last two folders that weren’t ripped into, stray papers littering the floor around the entire table. Organization wasn’t the most important thing in mind when there was so much information to get down to. “Maybe we should’ve gotten a second board.”

“Pearl, this was the biggest one we could find. How in the world did we even manage to fucking find it anyways?” Jasper was still in awe at the fact that Pearl actually managed to get them to where they were at the moment. She trudged so the two of them could run. As Pearl shifted away from the table to stretch out her legs, her pale skin was caught in one of the beams of sunshine poking through the blinds, and she could see the dark, heavy eyebags much better pulling at the otherwise porcelain skin. “It’s ten. We should take a break, you look like you need some rest.”

“I won’t be able to sleep. I want to go through all of our information again.” Despite the physical indications of exhaustion, a grin was crawling on her thin lips, head swinging back to the direction of the whiteboard. “Look at this all, it’s beautiful!”

“When Homeworld realizes one of their members and their information is missing, they’re going to be on our backs even more.” Jasper shook her head and followed the statement by pushing herself away from the chair. “We’re going to have to be more careful.”

“By the time they even figure out she’s missing, they’re going to be in handcuffs in the back of police cars.” She wasn’t sure whether it was the delirium or excitement that was influencing Pearl’s response, but whatever she was, she liked it; even if it was the result of getting little less than three hours of sleep. The other’s enthusiasm was taking off some of the burden of her fatigue.

Her attention subsided from Jasper, instead of to the whiteboard once more. Blue and red marks barely left any traces of white, with multiple arrows flying across the board and scribbled words that barely fit on the sidelines. “I can’t even figure out where to begin reviewing!”

“I don’t blame you. I don’t even know  _ if _ I want to review this.” The information wasn’t surprising to her quite frankly, but having it displayed there physically for her was disturbing. Seeing it all at once, every inhumane, criminal action and value just there for her eyes to scan through made her feel sick. At least she had someone else to cope with the information with. 

“I knew they were big,” Pearl idly fiddled with the cap in her hands. “Taking down one single base will never be enough to take them down altogether. We could be at this for years and while we’re focused on one base, they could be building ten more!”

“And to think, how many members genuinely don’t want to be in there.”

Pearl raised her brow. “What do you mean?”

“Put it into perspective. They have enough members that they can have dozens of bases across the country, possibly internationally, and they seem to be doing a good job considering they’re doing this all under our noses.” It was amazing to her how Homeworld had access to the things they did; weapons, buildings, income. They had it all flowing through them without suspicion. Bribery could be practically confirmed with this statement alone.”There has to be some involvement with corrupt companies or politicians coddling them under their arms. And how many members can we assume just decided to give up their personal freedoms for a life of violence?”

“I never thought about it that way…” The marker was placed on the table, Pearl’s voice much more humorless than before. “I wonder how many of them were recruited with no other choice, Debt, living situations-”

“Straight up napping’ too.”

“I’ll have to request records of missing persons cases around here. Who knows how many could be related.” It was entertaining to watch Pearl so concentrated, the way she stared intensely at one of the last folders they had to go through. “What about that one?”

Rather than waiting for Jasper to take it, Pearl snatched the file among the abundance of misplaced papers. The grin that replaced the once somber expression of the shorter was immediate as she held it up like a prized family heirloom. “Either our suspect was new to Homeworld or was stupid enough to not throw her guide manual away!”

“That’s a jackpot Homeworld would do anything to get out of our hands.” This was going to skyrocket their progress, but it was also going to increase their risk of danger. She had a bad feeling in her gut Homeworld was already starting to put things together, which meant the two of them had to take more precautions than they already were.

“We’re going to have to be more careful then, right?” Jasper wasn’t sure exactly what else they could do. They were taking precautions, and now only a matter of time would show them if they were safe or not. Pearl returned her attention to the brightly covered file, her gaze proud as it was carefully tucked into her arms like a cherished relic. Adding on to her amusement, Pearl gave a relieved and satisfied sigh. “ _ Instruction Guide: Why You’re Here and Why We Don’t Care We’re Breaking The Law. _ ”

“Is that really what it says?”

”No.” Pearl grinned. “They might as well though, the first page is a table of contents! Rules, ranks, positions, this is exactly what we need! Let’s take a break, and after that, we can contact my friend, Garnet. I already have a plan for what we can do.” 

“Oh, what would that be?” Jasper raised a curious brow, her lips turned in an amused grin. “What’s our first plan of action?”

“As if I’m going to spoil the fun.” Pearl scoffed, rolling her eyes. “I’ll tell you when I tell Garnet. For now, get some rest.”

“Jasper, I need the GPS, please.”

“I thought you used to live here.” Despite the fact she rolled her eyes, Jasper grabbed the phone originally placed on her lap and unlocked it with a few taps. 

Three hours later, after being granted a few additional hours of rest, Pearl and Jasper boarded themselves into not one, not two, but  _ three _ rent-a-cars and were on their way to Pearl’s hometown. The ride could’ve been forty minutes, but with the extra precautions they were taking, Pearl refused to take a direct route to Beach City to meet up with Garnet, who was apparently an expert in whatever Pearl wanted to do. At least the scenery on the ride up was astonishing.

They were on hour two of their drive now, her legs beginning to cramp up with the lack of space she was granted. Even the largest car they could find to rent was too small for Jasper’s comfort; the world truly wasn’t made for tall people.

“I’m not used to taking these roads to Beach City.” Pearl huffed, though instantly forgot the GPS fiasco as blue eyes suddenly lit up. “Nevermind, I know where I am now!”

“I sure hope so,” Teasingly, the taller stuck out her tongue. “You still haven’t told me what we’re doing here.”

“You’ll find out soon enough, you just have to be patient. Did you remember the files?”

“It would’ve been better to ask me that right before we left.” She pressed her palm against the bag in her lap. “But yes, I did.”

The gentle rumbling of gravel underneath the tires filled the silence as they pulled into the parking lot of a rather small building-- Pearl said Beach City was small, but this police department was much tinier than she expected. It was cute, and based on the overall safety of the town she heard of, the small group of staff must’ve been doing something right.

“Rose is sick with the flu, but I won’t be surprised if Garnet wants us to meet with the others for lunch. Watch out, he may be small, but Steven’s a  _ hugger.” _

“As if he’ll even come up to my knee.” Once the car pulled to the stop and Jasper beat Pearl to pocketing the key, she immediately let her way out of the car, relieved immediately for the fresh air washed over her after the past car ride without any air conditioning. She returned back to her full height, placing a hand on the roof of the car as she stretched out her muscles, kicking one leg in front of her at a time as she allowed her body to warm up to move again.

“You’ll like Amethyst, that’s for sure.” Pearl emerged from the other side of the car with the bag of files Jasper completely forgot were tucked away in the back seat, glancing down at her phone for a moment before it was slipped into her bag as well. “It may seem like Garnet doesn’t like you, but she just doesn’t like small talk.”

“The stoic type, what a perfect officer stereotypes. Does she like donuts, too?” As she pushed the door open, she couldn’t help but notice the sheer amount of excitement in Pearl’s form and her inability to stay still. She never saw the other this excited, even during the time they managed to get the hot water running longer than ten minutes. “Someone’s excited, huh?”

“I haven’t seen my best friend in a week, of course I’m going to be excited!” With a nasty glare sent her way, the tall woman shook her head before issuing back an equally-serious scoff. The station on the inside wasn’t very different from the one in her own town; the only difference she could spot was the color of the walls that was a soft pink compared to the cream she was used to. 

Not paying attention to anything besides the paint, she was surprised to see that Pearl was no longer standing next to her when she planted herself back into reality, instead of flying into the arms of a woman who suddenly appeared at the base of the doorway near the front desk. This must be Garnet.

“Garnet!” The thin woman shrilled when strong hands positioned over her hips, propelling her into the air as pale hands found themselves wrapping around the officer’s neck even with the bag awkwardly squished between them. At this playful display of friendship, Jasper couldn’t help but smile.

When Garnet set Pearl down, she was granted a better view of the other. She was  _ tall _ , almost as tall as her, which was something she almost never saw. Her skin was a pretty umber, a bit darker than the areas of her own that weren’t covered with blotches of fawn, and to Jasper’s  _ very _ indulgent observation, this woman was no stranger to the gym. What Jasper thought looked brilliant were the ringlets that curved her jawline, the sides of her face up all the way to the dark glasses that she wore, even inside the building.

“Welcome back, Pearl.” Even pulling apart, Garnet kept a hand pressed against Pearl’s shoulder, who in turn leaned into the touch with the last of her giggly breath fading away. They were obviously close, making her admittedly feel a tiny pang of envy in her stomach, It was quickly forgotten when Garnet turned her attention to her, the tiniest of a smile on her full lips. “You must be Officer Zahri.”

“Jasper’s alright.” Crossing her arms over her chest, she rested some of her weight against her leg while the rest was leaned against the wall. “I don’t think you and Pearl are strangers, are you?”

“Oh stars, no!” Pearl grinned. “We’ve been friends since high school!”

“Tenth grade,” Garnet added, “All because Rose wanted us to work together.”

“And if you know me well enough, you know exactly why I came here. You heard about our stroke of luck this morning, right?”

“That’s all we’ve been talking about here, news spread around here quickly.” Garnet finally parted ways with Pearl, now leisurely slid near the hallway behind the front desk. “Can’t say I know why you came over here to talk with me. Let’s go into my office and chat, you can tell me your marvelous plan there.”

Pearl and Jasper were quick to tag along as Garnet turned, disappearing down the hallway. They shared an exhilarated glance with each other before rushing to catch up with the other woman.

As they followed Garnet, quietly to Pearl, Jasper whispered, “Why is she still wearing those glasses?”

“They’re her comfort item,” the thinner woman responded. “Just like how you always have your hair up, she likes to have her visors on.” With Pearl’s observation, the cop’s cheeks rushed to a dark crimson; was it really that noticeable that she preferred her hair tied?

“So, it’s not anything medical?”

“Well, she is photophobic, so for comfort and medical reasons.”

“I told the others you were here to visit, so you’re stuck here until you have lunch with us.” Garnet’s words were stolid as she pressed her thumb against the light switch next to the door frame. There was a desk in the middle of the room, with an office chair on one side and two stools on the other. The slight sound of music still came from the computer on the desk. 

“I should’ve seen that coming, though we really shouldn’t...” So far, the two had been vigilant when they were in public. However, based on Pearl’s recent statements, she knew it was only a matter of time before she caved into her friends' requests for lunch together. “Now, let’s get to business, shall we?”

“Of course, I wouldn’t want to waste our time.” Garnet’s attention, even with her visors covering her view, was obviously on the bag placed on the desk, trailing her finger against its buckle. “So, tell us now, what’s on your mind?”

Pearl’s conspicuous expression moved from the two women, then to the bag. “I’m glad you finally asked.”

Suddenly, Pearl’s hands raised from politely folded against her lap to ramming into the bag. She pulled out a back hoodie, tossed carelessly at Garnet before she stood up, slamming her hands onto the desk. 

“We’re going to pull a heist!”

With Pearl’s announcement of her plan, both Jasper and Garnet’s jaws dropped; it looks like they had something in common now.

“Pearl,” The dark woman was much quicker to regain composition that Jasper, though despite her past stoicism, there was still shock present in her tone. “A heist is  _ extremely _ dangerous. Especially in this case!”

“That’s why I came to you, the master of heists!” Unphased by either of the two’s reactions, she grabbed at the sweatshirt again, holding it up to her body and emphasizing the size of the clothing; it could probably fit five Pearls inside of it at once. “I’ve been planning this since before the mission started! With all of the information we have, how could we let it go to waste?”

“There’s a difference between you and me, Pearl.” Her words were stern. “I was trained for this. I can make arrests. You can’t.”

“Well thank the stars I have someone on my team who can make arrests!” Pearl instantly pointed her way, and Jasper knew it was time to add her own two cents into the argument, which meant she had to choose who to back up before her lips parted to speak.

“She  _ does _ have a point.” Her words chose her decision for her, inciting a questioning glance from both women. “In the week we’ve been together, Pearl has been coming up with more ideas than any other investigator I’ve been partnered with combined.”

Realizing Jasper was taking her side, the pale woman’s confidence sky-rocketed, her chest puffed and her chin rising by a slither. “See, what did I say?”

“You want to do this heist yourself.”

“Of course I do! It’s my mission.”

“You could get seriously hurt, Pearl.” Garnet, logically, was stubborn to budge, considering Pearl-- five-foot-four, ninety-five-pound ballerina  _ Pearl-- _ seriously wanted to pull a heist without any background experience with one. “ _ Seriously hurt _ . Take that into consideration.”

Pearl’s hand swept through peach hair, distracting Jasper momentarily at the awe that the other could have the fluffiest, mused hair she’d ever seen and still manage to make it appear well-kept and elegant at the same time. “That’s what Rose said when she first assigned this mission to me! We talked about this, remember? You agreed you wouldn’t smother me!”

“Pearl-” 

“Are you going to back out of this promise?” 

Her last sentence took Garnet back, lips gape wordlessly as she leaned back into her seat. Then, with a final sigh of defeat, she shook her head. “You’re right, I did say I wouldn’t smother you,” She finally admitted. “You have to be sure you want to do this.”

When Pearl eagerly nodded, Garnet tilted her head to face Jasper. “You have to be willing to help her.”

“Even if I didn’t, I don’t think I’d have a choice.” She followed her words with a nod of her own. “I think this is a genius plan. It’ll definitely get us somewhere.”

“Thank you both for your cooperation.” With the agreement of the plan, Pearl immediately relaxed at the lack of immediate rejection. “Lucky for us, the woman we detained had a handy file of her schedule with her; all of her deals for the next two weeks. The next one is tomorrow, the ideal day to pull this off.”

“Tell me about your plan.”

“Between either of us, I have a frame most similar to the woman, so I’ll be the one posing as her. Of course, with appropriate clothes and a prop. Jasper will be watching from the side, and if things go as planned, I’ll hopefully manage to coax some information out of them. Maybe about other deals they’ve had in the past, some more Homeworld information. When they’re distracted enough, that’s when Jasper will come in and arrest them.”

“Sounds solid enough.” Garnet hummed, “They might have a back-up.”

“From personal experience with busts like this, that’s not likely,” To give Garnet the benefit of the doubt, Jasper finished with, “But if they do, I’ll be the one with the gun. If things go downhill, they won’t be hesitant to run away like ducks when they see a six-foot woman with a pistol.”

“I’m going to have to trust you both with this.” The dark woman leaned back against the table, her bare elbows resting against the wood. “I’ll try to get you a mock bag of dope as soon as I can, but you do realize I’ll have to inform the others about this plan in order to authorize it.”

“Even Rose?”

“Even Rose.” Following Pearl’s sigh, dripped with disappointment, Garnet snaked her hand over the table, her calloused hand cupping warmly over the thinner woman’s and affectionately rubbing her thumb over pale skin. “Look on the bright side, Amethyst will stop calling you a pantywaist. Once Rose recovers from the flu I’m sure she’ll want to meet up with you and recall how it goes.”

Jasper could see a smile on Pearl’s lips beginning to grow. “I guess I can’t be angry at that. Does that mean you approve?”

“It means I do.” Her response prompted Pearl to nearly tumble out of her chair from excitement, gripping the ends of the stool in order to prevent herself from toppling to the ground, before one of her hands came to lightly fist at Jasper’s bicep. “If you go to the front desk, there’ll be a pile of papers near the coffee mug. Grab me one of the forms and I’ll be able to sign this thing off.”

“Right, I’ll be right back!” The stool nearly did topple over as she pushed herself away from it, eager to put things in order. Jasper couldn’t help but grin at her delirium as she watched Pearl practically zip full speed out the door. However, the exhilaration faded when she felt Garnet’s hardened glare drill holes into her skull, even with her head turned. When she turned back to the shorter woman, she was surprised when a hand reached up to grab at her visors, pulling them from her face. When she opened her eyes, Jasper was struck with the unusualness of their colors. Her left was a pretty blue that reminded her of the ocean nearby, a bright cerulean that really complimented her skin. To her right, Jasper was lost in the green-hazel that brightened under the office’s light; these were the most gorgeous eyes Jasper had ever seen, it was a shame they were always hidden. But she was obviously distressed by the light, squinting under its brightness, and it wasn’t long before the sunglasses slipped back over her nose. Rightfully so; Jasper couldn’t rip her gaze away for a few moments even after the visors were back on, spotting her own form in the reflection of the frames.

“Pearl and I have known each other since high school,” Garnet began. “I was there for her when she needed support the most. She is my best friend and I wouldn’t hesitate to take a bullet for her. I know her best, she can be stubborn. Don’t let her continue if things are starting to go downhill. You can’t do much to help, but please,” She paused, her chin lowering. “Don’t let her get hurt.”

“I won’t.” Jasper, for the first time in months, was actually intimidated by another person, another officer at that. She was right when she guessed Pearl and Garnet were close, and she was much too eager to nod in addition to her promise. “I want to make sure she stays out of harm's way as well.”

A smirk fell to Garnet’s lips. “Good, then I think we’ve got much more in common than we think. Now, before Pearl comes back, let me show you some old pictures of her.” 

The mood changed instantly as a big, goofy grin fell onto Garnet’s lips and she pulled her phone from her pocket, prompting Jasper to lean in. “Promise you won’t tell her I showed you these.”

”Got it.” 

“Great. You’re going to love this one.”

“A heist!” Steven’s voice was way too loud for the environment they were in. 

After yesterday’s meeting with Garnet, they agreed to stay the night at Garnet’s in her spare bedroom, and Pearl was forced to agree to meet up the following day with her friends for lunch. She was still obviously worried that this could potentially bring bad things their way, but Jasper was quick to remind her that after their three-hour drive, the chances of anyone following them were slim. Still, a sweet little family diner was not the best location to talk about drug busts.

Thankfully, Connie read Jasper’s mind, because her hands planted onto the boy’s shoulders, gently aiding him back from his knees and into his seat.

Garnet hadn’t been lying when she said the others would want to meet her before they left back to Ocean Town. Amethyst, Steven, Connie, and Bismuth all managed to squeeze into the booth that instantly bubbled with laughter at Steven’s outcry. Pearl was formerly devastated when she was informed that Rose and Greg were unable to come due to her flu, but her spirits had been lifted as soon as Steven toppled over her in what had to be the tightest hug she ever witnessed.

Steven was interesting; a boy who came under her waist yet still managed to make her stumble at their first hug. Gazing up at her with stars in his eyes, we had stated his shock that she was taller than his mom. Of course, this obviously resulted in Jasper taking him on a piggy-back ride around the parking lot before coming into the diner, as one should when faced with such innocent enthusiasm. “Someone’s excited. You're gonna go around telling everyone you know two superheroes now?”

“Yes!”

“Steven, you’re already surrounded by heroes.” Connie was also a character, the reasoning to Steven’s enthusiasm, her father was also a policeman, and even if that was the case Jasper hadn’t been expecting the girl to bring up a conversation about the last time she calibrated her radar speed gun. “Garnet, Jasper,  _ and _ Bismuth are cops, Pearl is an investigator, and Amethyst is a paramedic. Did you forget?” 

“You’re right!” Aghast at this realization, Steven turned back to glance at all of them individually, nearly dropping his strip of bacon in the process without his attention on it. “You’re all superheroes! What you’re doing is so brave!”

Suddenly, he paused. “It’s also dangerous!” Connie managed to coax Steven back to his seat before, but now it looked like she would have to help him again as he nearly spilled over the bowl of soup he momentarily forgot about. “Do you two promise you’re going to stay safe?”

“We promise.” Pearl was visibly flattered with the bot’s concern, shaking her head with a bit of a chuckle. “To show you we’ll even try to stop at your house before we have to go back to Ocean Town.”

”Are you sure you have to go back tonight? Only one night?!” Steven frowned as he slumped back into the cushion, though his heartbreak was paused to shove a spoonful of broth into his mouth. 

We have work to do, Steven.” Garnet had already managed to find a passable mockery of the supplies they would need, and even though they told her that would be enough, she had offered them hospice as well. Pearl hadn’t been kidding when she said Garnet showed affection to those she continued close to her. “Besides, the bed where we’re staying is tiny.”

“It’s my moms’ room when they come to visit,” Garnet cleared up to Steven, “It was nice to have someone in their room while they’re gone.”

“Wait.” The shortest of the group gasped, prompting everyone to turn to him with questioning glances as his eyes shot back to Jasper, to Pearl, and then back to the taller woman.“Are you guys a couple?”

Jasper was fortunate she didn’t have anything in her mouth, because it probably didn’t feel pleasant to have raspberry iced tea reiterate back into her throat, an obvious statement as a napkin was suddenly snatched and pressed against Pearl’s nose, leaning over as Amethyst leaned forward to massage gentle shapes into her shoulder blade albeit her own laughter. When Jasper said her face exploded, her face  _ exploded _ .

“Steven, they just met a week ago!” Connie’s words were mockingly stern, playfully nudging the shorter with her curled elbow as punishment for Pearl’s sudden bout of coughing. “Your head is always so full of romance!”

“It’s not my fault, that’s just how my mind works!” Steven scoffed in return, rolling his eyes. Silence suddenly engulfed the group before the pair simultaneously broke into laughter as Pearl and Jasper recovered from their shock.

Out of everything that they had done in the past week, this had to be the most excruciating.

Jasper despised this setup, she didn’t know why she agreed to it at all. It was too dangerous for her liking, and she felt way too exposed. It was a perfect environment for the heist; a low street of the city at nearly twelve in the morning. Shouldered between two rickety brick buildings, the dying street light above and the mass of fog that covered the cement wasn’t making the ominous tension in the air better.

She didn’t like curling behind the dumpster at the very end of the alleyway, leaving Pearl alone leaning near one of the abandoned trash cans in the heart of the street. She did have to admit, from where she peered silently around the corner, the black hoodie she donned masked her features well. She really did look like someone trying to deal with drugs, a compliment she never expected herself to ever deliver. She was glad that the mission so far was on track.

They had been stations out there for at least half an hour, maybe more. Their guest would arrive at any minute, and with this thought Jasper fiddled with the handcuffs connected to her buckle for the fifth time in the past ten minutes, just to make sure no one had stolen them in the thirty seconds between her last reach.

Jasper whipped back around as a new sound waved through her ears, adrenaline immediately joining her anxiety as she peered over the dumpster with extreme caution. There was a new figure at the opposite end of the alleyway, and if she was disturbed by how still and silent they were asides from dropping their soda can against the road, she could barely imagine how Pearl must be feeling.

“H-Hello?” Pearl’s voice wavered, an entire octave higher than usual due to the fear she could assume must’ve been coursing through her. From where she stood, she could see Pearl gripping at her sleeves like her life depended on it.

The silence that followed was even more frightening. He continued to walk, leisurely taking his time escaping the fog and making his sweet way down the alley. He finally stopped, and finally, Jasper could see the outline of his form.

_ Their forms _ . Out of nowhere, a second shorter form slid out of the shape of the first.  _ Shit. _

Pearl’s confidence likely recovered at the shock, because she pushed herself off the brick, her hand sliding into one of her pockets. When it emerged again, the prop baggie was encased in her palm, and she even had the audacity to  _ toss  _ it up in the air. “You’re late. Never knew you needed back up for something as simple as a few grams of dope.”

“You’re much more talkative than usual, Sunshine.” The man’s voice was raspy, and as the two stepped closer to Pearl, she could see that he looked just as unattractive as his voice. She usually didn’t judge, but these were criminals she was talking about. “You never said I couldn’t bring a friend. She’s thinking of getting into the business. Told her she could tag along to dip her feet into the water.”

_ Dip her feet into the water _ . Jasper scoffed. Targeting teenagers of the town and the homeless, this man had some nerve treating this business like a high and mighty privilege.

“Understandable. I’d like a warning next time though.” Pearl’s voice grew  _ much _ deeper as if she was trying to mock the criminal’s voice. “They’ve been cracking down on us. I nearly got pulled over last night. Now, let’s get down to business, shall we?”

The woman, shorter than either Pearl or the man, raised her eyebrows at the baggie Pearl pulled from her pocket. She eyed it with suspicion and anticipation. “You’re giving him that much?”

Pearl scoffed. “I’ll give it to him as soon as he shows me cash.”

Jasper watched with expectation as the man shifted his hand into his jean pocket, subconsciously gripping the handle of her pistol tighter. It was quick to loosen when he merely pulled out a wad of cash, and she even held back an amused scoff as she watched a few dollar bills escape his grip, fluttering down to the ground where they were thoroughly soaked. “Your pay is in twenties and fives today. Next week we’ll be back to fifties and hundreds.”

“As long as it’s all there,” Pearl was hesitant to lean forward for the transaction, much preferring to be hidden in the shadows the hall cast over her body. Tentatively, the cash was pressed into her hands and the baggie was snatched from her grip.

The man turned to his partner, carelessly tossing the bag into her hands. “Inspect it, remember what I taught you.”

The tiny wrap keeping the bag closed was twisted off and flicked to the ground without a care with the woman obviously ecstatic to have her first inspection. Silence fell upon them again, with Pearl shuffling the cash between her fingers and the man supervising his partner’s inspection.

“So.” Nothing would come out of this if they didn’t squeeze any information out of either of them, and Pearl was obviously ready to try milking the cow. “I don’t want to assume Homeworld is your only source of supply?”

“Of course, it is.” The man responded with offense at the thinner’s statement, “Homeworld is the best. You guys have  _ the  _ quality, not to mention you’ve got people here and in Keystone, too. Just about everywhere in the country.”

_ Keystone? _

She didn’t think they would squeeze information from the pair so soon, yet with Pearl’s first question, they already hit their first hit; there was at least one more base around in Keystone.

“I do have to admit.” He turned his attention towards the little bag that the shorter woman had rested in her palm as if testing the weight of the crystals against her skin. “This time it looks like you packaged it differently. I’m not the one for inconsistency, Sunshine.”

“The supplier was a bit late in their haul and I didn’t want to make you wait.” The excuse was smart with such little time she had to prepare for the question. “One of the new third parties were a bit behind, we’re thinking about dropping them. Besides, you’re the one that changed our groove by bringing a goon.”

“Yeah, whatever.” The man brushed off Pearl’s rebuttal with a wave of his hand. Jasper was immediately concerned as his expression began to turn sinister. “Now, let’s get back to what we were talking about last time. Did you speak with Wh-”

“Hey.” The smaller woman’s cry grabbed the attention of both figures, to Jasper’s disappointment, and once the focus was hooked on her, she took the baggie in her hands and shoved it into the face of her partner. “Is this supposed to smell like sugar?”

Jasper’s blood grew cold as the man pushed the baggie away from his face, and even from around the corner, she could pinpoint the sudden anger that was strewn into his glare. And by the way the thin woman’s posture immediately froze, beginning to take hurried steps back from the pair, Pearl was equally as surprised. For the first time since she knew her, she looked genuinely  _ terrified _ .

Her flee backward was interrupted as the man grabbed onto her shoulder, and Pearl squealed when her jaw was harshly gripped into his palm, effectively pulling her from the covering shadows. His free hand forcibly gripped her hood, pulling it away from her face. With her features revealed, his eyes narrowed. “You’re not  _ Sunshine _ .”

_ “Don’t let her get hurt.” _

Garnet’s words burst into her mind, knowing right now she needed to put the heist to an end. They got the information, and now, it was time to make the arrests.

“Put your hands where I can see them!” Jasper wasted no time revealing herself from the corner, relishing in the shock that coursed through the two criminals. The man shoved her partner away from his grip, the momentum of the push causing Pearl to stumble for a few steps before finally tumbling to the ground. From that point forward there wasn’t much more she could do except watch Jasper take down the criminals.

And by the way two shared a collective “ _ Shit!”  _ amongst each other and burst into a desperate sprint, Pearl was definitely going to have a show to watch.

She knew she’d only be able to catch one of them, with only one pair of cuffs, and her golden eyes set on the man. The woman was new to this and wasn’t the one who had  _ actually _ made the transaction, and perhaps this interaction would scare her away from this course of life.

The man, unfortunately, wasn’t short. However, he was much more out of shape than Jasper, and it wasn’t hard to spot the flounder in his steps as he rounded the next corner in an attempt to lose the taller woman’s track.

His attempts were futile from the start though, and it wasn’t long before Jasper caught up to him, diving forward and crashing into him, and the both of them tumbled into the cement below.

Even when he was pinned down by two-hundred-fifty pounds he had yet to give up, his fist futilely pummeling against her shoulders as she pulled his fists behind his back. It did nothing but spark her amusement. “Sir, you can stop now.” Satisfaction coursed through her veins; watching the defeated expressions of criminals had to be the most rewarding part of the job.

His response was a string of not very pleasant words that she knew Steven would  _ never _ say unless he wanted to be grounded until college. The  _ click!  _ of a metal cuff locking into place on his pinned wrist only further provoked his frustration, however, he stopped his swears, finding the dirty pavement much more interesting than the current situation.

It wasn’t long before she heard a second figure behind her, her lips pulling into a satisfied grin when a gentle hand was placed against her broad shoulder rather than tiny fists trying to attack her from behind. “The other one got away.”

“We’ve got the one that we needed, the other will probably be too scared to do shit like this again.” Once she was sure the handcuffs were secure, she relieved the pressure on the figure below her, turning her attention to Pearl. “Are you okay?”

“It isn’t going to leave a bruise.” As she spoke, her gaze ran down to her pocket, pulling her phone out. “But it’s going to be a bit sore. I’ll call Garnet and Bismuth and get them over here. They can bring him to the station and also scope around the area for his vehicle. I just wonder what he was going to say before his partner interrupted him.”

“ _ Did you talk to Wh…”  _ Anyone with a brain could fit those words together. “Did you talk to White?” 

The other frowned. “Looks like we have some more thinking to do when we get home.”

“What else was I expecting?” Jasper chuckled, before allowing the topic at hand to shift more teasingly. “I have to admit.” Jasper paused her words momentarily as she kneeled from the ground, her firm hand against the chains of the cuffs, gently bringing the man up along with her. “You’re a convincing actress, for a minute I almost thought I was watching an actual transaction.”

“I did a bit of theater in high school.” Pearl’s covered arms crossed over her chest, rolling her neck against her shoulder. As she did so, Jasper could pinpoint some faint redness at her jawline. “I don’t think I’m going to be able to drive home, I’m far too tired.”

“Does that mean we get to stay for the night?”

“You bet.”

Diving into the ground wasn’t the best idea in the end.

Garnet had been quick to pick the trio up and was more than happy that the two decided to accept her offering of housing for a second night. After dropping the man off at the station, it wasn’t much later until the warm air of Garnet’s living room met her suddenly chilly body, with the darker woman bidding them goodnight and directing them once again to the guest bedroom.

Jasper waited for Pearl to be done in the bathroom before washing up to the night, and as she pulled her top over her head, she spotted multiple blossoming bruises on her shoulder and bicep, an indication of the scuffle from earlier. Tomorrow she’d no doubt wake up sore.

When she glanced in the mirror, she was not expecting to be taken back in time. Just looking at herself, observing her injuries from the day made her think to a few years back. Has she changed since then? Definitely, but she hadn’t lost any of her skills. She was still a talented soldier, even without her short hair and just a bruise on her shoulder. It took her back to the times of contusions running down her arms and wearing them with pride, physical medals of her accomplishments that engendered praise from others. Her rhyme and rhythm of her hard work, the evidence that she was hardworking and loyal to- 

_ Stop _ . 

She wasn’t in old times. She was right now, and the slip of her mind gave her a momentary period of disseverment. She  _ knew _ that all of this was her choice. This was right. This was different.

She brought nothing more than one day’s worth of capsules, not expecting an extra day out of town. She’d be cranky tomorrow, she needed to get her rest and prepare.

Without wasting any more time, she slipped her nightshirt over her head, and when she stared back into her reflection again, she was delighted to feel more attached to the present.

Running her hands over her face one more time, she unlocked the door, flicking off the light as she returned into the still unfamiliar hallway.

_ Did you talk to White? _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much for all of the feedback, it motivates me a lot, friends!


	5. Up in a Cloud of Smoke

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jasper and Pearl receive a not so great gift from a secret admirer.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TRIGGER WARNING: This chapter contains fire, hospital scenes and the mention of needles! There will be a summary of the chapter at the bottom if you need to skip these scenes! Stay safe!

Sleeping was alright.

The bed, like last night, was still too tiny for the both of them to fit in, and with her injuries from earlier, Pearl insisted on sleeping on the floor with a blanket and a pillow. Despite the insistent bickering between the two, Jasper eventually took the other’s offer, too tired and too sore to argue. She nearly tripped on Pearl on her multiple trips to the bathroom during the night, but thankfully she never woke the other up.

By the time the pair were ready for the day the next morning, Garnet was already in the kitchen, sitting at the table with a mug of coffee in her hands.

“Good morning.” Garnet's smile faded as the two stepped into kitchen light, frowning. Despite this, she craned her head towards the coffee pot on the counter. “There are two mugs on the counter. You both have bruises.”

“Maybe I shouldn’t have dived into the ground like that.” The large woman sighed as she tipped the metal pot over, relishing in the scent of the black liquid that dripped into her mug. There was a certain tanginess to its smell, establishing its quality and strength and already helping her fight off the beasts of sleepiness. “I just need some Aspirin. What about you, Pearl?”

“Mine isn’t even a bruise. It’s just a mark, it doesn’t even hurt.” Rather than going for the coffee, Pearl slipped into the chair besides Garnet, arching back her shoulder until a quiet pop could be heard from her joint. "I’m just glad we managed to get some information. They’ve condensed their bases inconsiderably, a base in Ocean Town  _ and _ Keystone? That’s no more than twenty miles apart!”

“Despite placing their bases so sporadically around the country, they’re flourishing.” Jasper finally joined the pair at the table, gently blowing at the coffee inside her mug in an attempt to cool it down. “The closest base besides the three we’ve pinpointed could be in the next town over or not for another five states.”

“They’ve got a trick up their sleeve that we can’t figure out. The car with the woman we found had no identification tied to it. We can’t find anything. That’s never happened before.” Garnet added her two cents into the conversation, pressing her arms over her chest as she leaned back into her chair.

“Homeworld has their sneaky ways, but we have some of their files, and that’s all we need.” Pearl placed her hand out in front of her. Only two of her fingers were out, but her other hand mimicked the same motion, and with sound effects Jasper could only describe as downright concerning, she began to rotate her hands back and forth. When her demonstration was greeted with nothing but bewildered expressions, she huffed and leaned back into her seat. “It’s a domino effect. One piece of information is going to lead to the next until we have enough to shut the base down.”

“You could’ve just said that, but we appreciate the gesture.” Garnet pushed herself away from the table, standing up and taking with her her empty cup. “I need to stop by the store to grab some groceries. I hope you two are staying until at least evening.”

“We could since we have all of our supplies…” When Pearl turned to Jasper for confirmation, she hesitated. They had everything work wise, but Jasper still lacked her day’s worth of medication. She could live without it for one day, but she’d rather not. Despite this, she nodded. “We’ll see then. We’ll stay until noon at least. Do you want me to make breakfast while you’re out?’

“Only if you want. You know where my ingredients are.” After placing her cup in the sink, Garnet grabbed her keys from the counter, as well as her jacket still hanging up at the kitchen door. “I won’t take long, it’s just down the street. If you need anything else, call me.”

“We will, stay safe!” The pair’s parting wave was shared with Jasper’s silent acknowledgement, her hand only slumping back down once she heard the sound of the front door shutting and locking with a click. Pearl wasted no time getting up from her seat shortly after. “Now, lets see what I can make with the things she has at hand.”

“Do you just offer to cook for everyone?” Jasper raised an amused brow as she leaned back into her chair, her lips pulled into a smirk. “And eat none of it?”

“I like cooking!” Pearl turned back to Jasper with a teasing stink eye before returning her attention back to the fridge, observing the contents inside. “I think bacon and eggs will have to do. Does that sound alright?”

“I don’t mind at all.” Jasper pressed a stray strand of hair that had slipped from its place behind her ear. “I need to go to the bathroom really quick and fix my hair.”

“That sounds alright! I have to go upstairs too and grab some things from my bag before I turn on the stove, anyways.”

Jasper cringed momentarily when the bright light of the upstairs bathroom flicked on, observing, with negative affirmation, how much brighter the lights in Garnet’s house was compared to their momentary housing. Garnet must have a rough time with that. 

Jasper regretted looking in the mirror.

Heavy tear bags under her eyes did not look very pleasing on her, and even after being awake for a while, her eyes were still clouded with drowsiness. She had slept with her hair tied up the entire night, but even then it wasn’t as controllable as she wanted. The fact that she was still in her pajamas didn’t make things better. She was at least thankful that her skin only required a splash of cold water to her face for the time being since she would feel awkward using any of Garnet’s products.

Three loud thumps were audible somewhere outside the bathroom, indicating Pearl’s return downstairs. Maybe she should change into something more appealing than her pajamas before she returned to the other’s presence. (Not that she wanted to impress her or anything.  _ Just  _ to look professional.)

Thus, she was quick to sprint to the spare room and grab her bag of clothes before quickly returning to the bathroom. She shuffled through the mess of clothes with unusual shortness of breath as she finally decided on her favorite hoodie and pair of sweatpants, not wanting to get into her work clothes just yet. She looked better, she still needed to fix her hair more, but she definitely looked like she’d been awake for a while now. She didn’t remember if she packed her eyeliner, though she wouldn’t worry about that until she got to that step.

Garnet must have taken a long shower before the two woke up, Jasper concluded as she noticed the bathroom’s slight atmosphere of steam. Shaking her head with discard as she let the last of the steam run its course, she reminded herself to ask permission to take her own shower once Garnet returned from the store. She turned her attention back to her hair, letting it fall over her shoulder as she prepared to tie it back up.

The steam was being stubborn, the bathroom felt as if it had gotten  _ more _ stuffy than before. It was strange, and with the wisps of smoke slipping from under the door…

_ Wait. _

Jasper wasted no time putting two and two together, discarding her half-done tie up and rushing to the door, slamming it open with its condition the least of her concerns. The cop was immediately overwhelmed with the influx of smoke that had suddenly invaded the hallway in a matter of moments. What the hell was going on?

Suddenly, the door to the bedroom down the hall opened in a similar process as Jasper’s had, and her initial confusion only increased when she realized the thinner hadn’t been downstairs like she thought. When she spotted Jasper, her eyes widened. “What happened?! The stove isn’t turned on!”

“I don’t know and don’t care!” Jasper pinched the hem of her shirt between her fingers and brought it over the lower part of her face, though rather than immediately racing for the stairway, she sprinted down the hall to Pearl and grabbed her wrist before turning to the stairs. Now was the time to get out of the house,  _ now _ .

**_BEEP! BEEP! BEEP!_ **

Pearl visibly jolted when the fire alarm above began to screech, pounding into their ears as they practically skidded down the stairs two at a time. Jasper was increasingly growing much more frantic to rush both figures down the stairs and to the front door. With each short gasp of breath the entire house felt as if it was getting stuffier by the minute. 

“Jasper.” Pearl’s indisposed pule from behind her made her stop and whip her head around. Tears were running down pale cheeks, just like her own, though her eyes were snapped shut and the fabric between her fingers was beginning to slip. “I can-t-”

“No talking, you’ll inhale more smoke!” Her statement followed Jasper taking initiative to fix the fabric positioned over Pearl’s mouth before pulling the other woman closer against her body, practically attached to her hip as she hooked a strong arm over her waist. It took much more time than Jasper liked to finally reach the ground floor, and with the front door in sight between the thick layers of smoke, a new rush of determination disintegrated any fatigue in her muscles. The fog was  _ horrible _ down here,  _ so smoky and hot _ , if the large amounts of smoke that was invading her lungs wasn’t showing her there was a fire, then the incredible heat and the flickers of flames she saw from the living room when she twisted her head definitely was. 

A wave of pain hit her head as she felt her ability to focus increasingly run down the drain.  _ No, no, no _ , she had to keep concentrated, just until she could get to the door and get Pearl out of the house. Then and  _ only then  _ could her body decide to drop dead. 

Finally,  _ finally _ , the front door was nearly kicked from its fringes as Jasper and Pearl met the clear, outside air. She immediately released Pearl from her grip as she collapsed into the grass, falling onto her hands and knees as her lungs desperately raced to replace the ash in her lungs with sweet, sweet oxygen. Amidst her clogged senses, she could hear chatter from around them, presumingly neighbors, and the sirens of the house still going off behind her. She mustered up as much strength as she could to turn her head, double checking to make sure she hadn’t somehow left Pearl in the house. She looked practically dead laying in the grass asides from the quick rises and drops of her chest. 

She couldn’t concentrate on anything or keep track of time. She felt like her consciousness was falling behind as she slumped down into the grass, view meeted with the bright blue sky and the faces of concerned neighbors looking down at her. 

The next few minutes went by in a confused haze; she remembered two of Garnet’s neighbors helping her to the sidewalk, feeling slight hands check at the pulse on her neck, and at one point caught a faint glimpse of a familiar face in the corner of her vision. Connie must have lived just a few houses down.

Gradually, as she took in more oxygen, she could feel her senses begin to clear up. Things were still hard to concentrate on, but now she could at least process the hard cement below her and the new voice that was beginning to filter through her ears.

“Hello? Can you respond?” Despite the confusion still running through her, the taller woman on the ground managed to nod, evoking a relieved smile from the woman above her. “Great. I’m Doctor Maheswaren, how are you feeling?”

“...Confused.” Jasper furrowed her eyebrows.

“Okay, keep on taking deep breaths, the fire department and paramedics are already on their way.” She paused for a minute as her gaze turned to her left, before returning back to her. “You must be Miss Zahri and Eguchi. My daughter Connie said she was already on the phone with Steven and the others. Do you remember who they are?”

"Connie is Steven’s friend… Steven is Rose’s son, Rose is Pearl’s boss… Eguchi...” Who was  _ Eguchi _ ? “No.”

“Good enough. At least you remembered everyone’s first names. Eguchi is Pearl.” Jasper felt a warm hand cup over her forehead. “You’re both still conscious. That’s a good sign.”

“I don’t-” Jasper’s relief upon Doctor Maheshwaren’s words was soon replaced with the initial confusion from before. There was a fire, that was made clear, but what started it was still tickling her brain. “The stove wasn’t on. There was no way it could’ve-”

“What started the fire should be the least of your worries right now. Keep on taking deep breaths, you and Pearl are the top priority right now.”

Jasper’s focus was stolen when the searing shriek of a new siren turned the corner, down the street. The ambulance continued to roll down the road until it was only a house down, and whoever was inside wasted no time bashing the back doors open.

"Jasper, Pearl!” It just so happened to be their lucky day that Amethyst was on duty, the short woman pausing as she contemplated which one of her friends to aid first. 

“You can take Jasper.” Doctor Maheswaren stood. “I’ll go check Pearl.” 

Once the older woman turned away, Amethyst was quick to rush to her side, placing her kit on the ground and immediately rushing to replace the hand that was once on her forehead. “Jasper, what the hell is going on?!”

“I don’t know, the stove wasn’t on." Jasper stopped as she felt two fingers press against her neck again. Understanding Amethyst was taking her pulse, she continued to stay silent until Amethyst was done. “Pearl and I were upstairs, and when I got out of the bathroom there was smoke  _ everywhere _ .” 

“Your pulse is a little elevated. We’re going to get you to the hospital as fast as we can and get you checked out, okay?" Amethyst turned her head, pulling her hand away from her warm forehead. “Let’s get a stretcher over here!”

“I don’t need to go to the hospital. I’m okay.”

“Safe rather than sorry, Jasper. Besides, that’s what they all say before they end up getting dizzy and toppling over.”

Jasper wanted to fall asleep so badly. The events of the morning completely drained her, and even just laying there in the stretcher, letting the paramedics do their job, was making her more fatigued. However, she needed to stay awake, she was much too concerned about Garnet’s house, and especially Pearl. 

She jolted when the ambulance came to a halt, fighting the urge to press her hands to her ears as the doors swung open and yelling immediately began. 

“Jasper Zahri, twenty-one-year-old female, smoke inhalation!” For being such a tiny woman, Amethyst's voice was powerful, and so was she herself, pulling her stretcher with ease down the hallway and towards where she assumed the emergency room was at. “Oxygen en route! Shortness of breath, chest pain, let’s take a blood test and a chest X-ray and see if we need to perform a bronchoscopy or HBO!”

“Wait, do you know anything about the house? Pearl?” 

“I would've told you as soon as I knew, Jasper. Pearl’s on the next ambulance here, now give me your arm, I want to get your tests done as fast as we can.” Jasper was never a fan of needles, though she complied with the command as the gurney was pulled into one of the many set up stations in the emergency room, thankfully not busy. She set her arm against the railing of the stretcher, though when Amethyst rolled up in her stool and picked up the tiny, sharp object from the table of tools next to her, she felt her breath stop. “Just don’t look at the needle, okay? I’m pretty sure the fire department was pulling up as soon as we were leaving. Everything is fine, Jasper.” 

The cop felt her body tense as she felt a tiny prod against her skin, and her eyes were glued shut as she focused on not breaking into tears. God, she hated needles. 

Thankfully, she wouldn’t have to distract herself any longer as the sound of a second cluster of voices speeding down the main hallway grew louder and louder as they neared the emergency room. 

“Pearl Eguchi, twenty-two-year-old female, smoke inhalation! Blood test and chest X-ray! Oxygen en route, chest pain, dizziness, vomiting!”

“No contrast X-rays! I’m allergic to the dye!” It didn’t surprise Jasper that even with an oxygen mask strapped over her face Pearl was still taking charge, though she was concerned with the hoarseness in her voice and her flushed face.

She was about to speak again when their eyes met from across the room as Pearl’s stretcher finally entered the emergency room, and the thinner immediately threw the mask out of her face despite the paramedic’s protests. "Oh, thank goodness! Are you okay?!”

“I’m just confused, are you sure you didn’t turn the stove on?”

“I’m positive! I even told you I wasn’t going to until we went back downstairs!” Pearl’s words immediately stopped when she felt her sleeve pull up, Jasper could clearly see the panic in her eyes when the nurse pulled a tourniquet under her arm. “W-Wait! I’m not good with blood!”

“Just look away and at me, Pearl, I hate needles, too. Here, I’ll even hold your hand.” 

“No you’re not.” The woman treating Pearl glared at her from her spot next to the other’s gurney. “You’re both going to stay still while we conduct our tests.”

“Guys!” A new voice stopped Jasper’s train of thought cut off as three new voices came from where they entered, and she was more than shocked to see Garnet, Connie and Steven right there, coming from the ambulance bay rather than the waiting room. How on Earth had they gotten there so quickly?

Steven wasted no time rushing forward to meet the two, though Pearl’s nurse immediately swiveled around in her chair, stopping the boy in his tracks with a glare strong enough to kill a bear. “You three shouldn’t be in here! You need to wait in the waiting room like everyone else!”

“Come on, just let them stay.” Jasper felt the tourniquet on her arm release and the less comfortable feeling of the needle sliding away from her skin. At least that was over. She watched as Amethyst rolled her eyes, angered at her co-worker's sour mood. 

“You’re not supposed to be here either, Amethyst! You’re a paramedic, not an emergency room nurse!” 

“Just focus on getting your bloodwork done, please. If you let them stay and let me work I’ll take your sample to the lab.” The paramedic sighed in relief as her coworker finally let up, moving on without another word and continuing to work on Pearl. With this obstacle out of the way, Steven continued his journey until he was at Pearl’s bed, surprisingly not jumping into it.

“Are you guys okay?!”

“We’re fine, we just don’t know what happened.” The thin woman let out a quiet cry of surprise when the nurse pressed a needle into her skin, to which Steven immediately clasped his hands over her free one, and even leaned down to press a kiss to her skin. “We didn’t start the stove! We don’t know what happened, is the house okay?!”

“The firefighters were able to put the fire out. Looks like I’m going to have to replace pretty much everything in the living room though.” Jasper felt guilt at the darker woman’s report, even if she hadn’t been the one to start the fire. At least, she didn’t think so.

“The things they found the most damaged w ere the shattered window and the three  _ smoke grenades _ and  _ wrap of linen _ they found next to the couch.” 

_ What?  _

Pearl’s free hand slipped from Steven’s grip and instead slammed against the railing of the gurney, though her body language immediately calmed down when the boy recoiled back from shock. The hand immediately came back to Steven’s. “We should’ve called it! Of course it was  _ their _ fault!”

“But how did they find out where Garnet lives?” Steven took this time to push himself onto the thin woman’s stretcher despite the nurse’s visible protests, and practically latched onto the woman’s waist and only released slightly when she took in a strained breath. 

“Someone must have followed us back when we were on our way home from the mission earlier.” Almost simultaneously, both Jasper and Pearl whipped their heads to share a glance at each other, immediately knowing which suspect was on the both of their minds; the woman they hadn’t arrested last night. 

“That-” The pale woman spun around back to Garnet in order to explain more, though she forgot to lift her head and her eyes met her arm and the test being performed on it. Including the needle and the blood vile. 

“W...Wow. That’s  _ my _ blood,” Pearl gasped, “T-That’s a lot of my own blood…” Jasper watched as the peach haired woman’s eyes stayed glued on her arm for a moment. Suddenly, her head rolled back and her entire body swiveled back into the stretcher, her posture immediately relaxing. She was out right away, much to Steven's horror.

“Pearl! Is she okay?!” 

“Steman, she just fainted.” Compared to the panic of him and Jasper, Amethyst was more amused than anything. “Let one of the interns get her a wet rag, she’ll be back in a minute.”

Jasper was pulled away for an X-ray before Pearl could wake up, much to her dismay. 

The X-ray didn’t take long, though rather than returning to the emergency room, she was wheeled into one of the holding rooms. Once an IV drip was attached to her arm, the nurse quickly left the room after informing her the test results would be back soon. It wasn’t long before familiar faces began to file into the room, including a man who introduced himself as Steven’s father who gratefully informed the nurses to bring Pearl into the same room once she was done with her own screening. 

“Sorry about Homeworld knowing your address.” Once Garnet situated herself in the seat next to the bed, Jasper wanted to make sure the shorter woman knew how she was feeling. “I don’t know what’s going to happen, but there’s a chance-” 

“There’s a chance of Homeworld screwing with me, too.” Jasper’s stress was dissolved with the lack of anger in her tone. “It’s not your fault. I have the money to upgrade my security system.”

Just a few moments after silence fell over the room, even from Steven, a second bed was soon being pulled into the room, and Jasper was thankful to see that Pearl was awake and responsive. Her eyelids were painted and a damp rag wrapped under her neck, though she had a tiny plastic cup of water in her hands and when she spotted the others in the room, she lifted her free arm, revealing the cotton pressed against her arm with a light green wrap. “I did another one.”

“How are you feeling Pearl?”

“Terrible.”

"You look just as horrible." Amethyst’s teasing statement was followed with an empty plastic cup being hurled at her forehead. 

After Pearl expressed her anger at Amethyst, she was quick to turn her attention back to the situation at hand. "Oh, as soon as I get my hands on that little…!” Thin hands gripped at her hospital gown hard, and Garnet had to push her chair closer to the bed and cup a warm palm over her own. With this, as well as Steven scrambling onto Pearl’s bed to hug her waist again, the woman visibly relaxed, though it was obvious the anger had yet to fade. “She could’ve grenaded our house, but to do that to Garnet’s!”

“I wish Mom was here.” Steven sighed as he pressed his cheek into Pearl’s stomach as thin hands gently ran through the mess of curls on top of his head. “Maybe she should be here now with how bad her flu is…”

“She’s been texting me nonstop since Pearl doesn’t have her phone.” As if on cue, a loud chime from Garnet’s pocket prompted the darker woman to retrieve her phone, only to lift it up moments later. “Say cheese, Pearl.”

“I can’t feel my arm.” 

“Good enough. She wishes she was here.”

“I wish she was here, too.” She pushed her head deeper into the cheap pillow with a sigh, only for her action to be met with stout arms pushing against her stomach tighter. Her tired smile visibly grew. “I’ll give her a visit tomorrow, I need to go over my next batch of plans with her.”

“You’re hospitalized for smoke inhalation yet you’re still thinking about work?”

“Smoke inhalation is an exaggeration. We had oxygen, and now we’re fine.” When Pearl tried to sneak away from the boy’s grip and sit up, Steven was quick to protest, and Jasper almost felt sympathy for Pearl; any tighter the hug became and she’d probably break a rib. “I should be changing out of this silly gown, they’re going to be here with our discharge papers in a minute.”

“Just wait until we get the results back.” As soon as Garnet could even talk, the sound of the glass door sliding open announced the arrival of the doctor, the same one from earlier. 

“Hey, Doctor Maheswaran!” Steven’s cheerful greeting made the older woman smile, a superpower Jasper observed throughout the day. ‘How are you doing okay today?”

“I’m doing just fine! I’m more concerned about how these two are doing.” The doctor pulled off a variety of papers from the board before turning her attention to the two in their beds. “Good news. You both look fine. We want to keep you both here for a few more hours for observation, but you’ll both be back in your own beds tonight.”

“Thank you, Dr. Maheswaren.”

“No problem. Miss Zahri. Your X-ray and blood test look normal, we want to put you on some humidified oxygen, but invasive treatment won’t be needed.” Despite her earlier words, her demeanor instantly changed as she turned to Pearl with a frown. "Now  _ you _ , we’re going to need another appointment.”

Pearl glanced at the doctor in surprise, with even Steven lifting himself from the thinner’s side to question Dr. Maheswaren. “What do you mean?”

"Well, your X-ray is perfectly normal.” She shuffled the papers in her clipboard again, and when Jasper turned her head to look over at Garnet, she already had her phone whipped out and her thumbs pressing against the sides of the screen, ready to update Rose. “But your blood test? You’re incredibly deficient in multiple areas! You’ve got iron deficiency anemia, extremely inadequate levels of vitamin C, D, calcium; at this point you’re more at risk for cardiac arrest!”

“I feel just fine! I might not get enough of them, but that’s only because it takes too much time to make way for my allergies and intolerances.” Between Pearl’s words, the faint tapping of fingers against a screen could be heard from where Garnet leaned back against her chair. 

“Well, if you keep up like this, in ten years you aren’t going to have a choice to be fine with it or not.” Doctor Maheswaren’s words were the last straw for Amethyst, her face visibly contoured before she doubled over in uncontrollable laughter, evoking a cold, surprisingly intimidating glare from Pearl. “Nevarez, just because you’re off duty it doesn’t mean you can act like a child.” With the doctor’s stern scolding, Amethyst’s laughter died down though it didn't completely stop as she struggled to regain her breath. “Pearl, I understand allergies can be stressful to deal with, but if you continue with your current diet you could be looking at some serious consequences in the future, especially with your current weight. We have multiple routes of treatment to help you get the nutrition you need.”

Jasper could see the restraint Pearl was putting on herself not to argue back, no matter how much she wanted to. “Fine. I can just take vitamins, correct?”

“Not just. I’ll write you a prescription you can pick up on your own way home. I want you to start them tomorrow, and I want you back here next month to check your progress. Then we will see if it's necessary to refer you to a clinic.”

”Thank you for everything, Garnet, we really appreciate it.”

Both Jasper and Pearl were completely burned of their patience by the time they were released a few hours later. Despite everything, staying at the hospital all day long for her friends and nearly having her house burnt down, Garnet insisted on driving the pair home. 

“I wanted to know you two got home safely.” The dark woman rested her weight against the door frame, crossing her arms over her chest. “Text me in the morning so I know you’re still okay.”

“Yes, Garnet.”

“And text me if anything is wrong.”

“Garnet, yes.” The thin woman wrapped her arms around the other’s neck in a warm embrace, leaving Jasper there to stand awkwardly half-way between the front porch and door. “You don’t have to worry about us, you should be worrying about you and your house.”

‘I already have someone coming over tomorrow to set up a better security system. As long as I can get through the night without another smoke grenade being tossed at my window, I’ll be fine.” Once the two finally pulled away from each other, Garnet’s hand still strayed, trailing against Pearl’s pale arm which evoked warm blush to fall onto Pearl’s cheeks. Pearl had said earlier they were close, but  _ how close  _ they had been in the past was something still in the shadows. "You don’t have to worry about me. Just make sure you stay safe.”

When Pearl smiled and nodded in response, Garnet turned her attention to Jasper, and even covered by the visors, she could still feel the intensity of the other’s stare as she reached a hand out. “Make sure you stay safe too, Jasper.”

_ “Don’t let her get hurt.” _

It was strange. Garnet said those five words  _ once _ , but they stuck with her for some reason. Despite her thoughts, she simply smiled in response, pulling Garnet's palm against her own in a firm handshake.

“I will.”

Jasper had no idea why she was running, but she was. Impulse told her to, everything in her mind told her she had to run, and despite how badly her lungs were begging for just a single breath of air, she continued, the muscles in her thighs burning. 

She didn’t know where she was, she was met with nothing but black, there was no floor, no ceiling, there was no sound besides her own breath. This was a nightmare, a reoccurring one, she  _ knew _ this, but she continued to run, even if she knew the inevitable turn of events that would happen next. 

As expected, she suddenly felt ground drop beneath her, sending her off her feet and spiraling into an endless fall downwards. Her untied hair whipped behind her, hands spread out uselessly in front of her. 

When she finally met ground again, she met it painfully against her face. Rising to her elbows, she feverishly observed her surroundings once again, finding exactly what she was expecting and what she was dreading every single time.-

Jasper’s entire body jolted as she tore her sheets away from herself, sweat drenching her entire body. Gripping her comforter with intense strength, she sighed, shakily trying to control her breathing. It was just a dream,  _ just a dream _ , but it was still terrifying with each night she had them.

Dawn would be coming soon, she probably needed to get up and get ready for the day. Everyone would be getting ready soon, and if she missed clock in because she took too much time to get in the showers-

Her words were interrupted as the doorknob twisted, stopping Jasper in her tracks and silenting her bewildered thoughts. She stared intently at the door as it took its time opening, doing absolutely nothing for her uncontrollable hyperventilation. 

A figure finally slid into the room, and despite the shadows from the uncrooked window blinds, it wasn’t hard to realize exactly who it was. 

_ “Welcome back.” _

For real this time, Jasper woke up, followed by a broken gasp muffled by the palm that slapped over her lips. Just to be sure, she frantically searched over her surroundings, thankful to find her in her own temporary bedroom. She could peek out and find Pearl’s room just in case she wasn’t fully confident, however she wouldn’t bother Pearl over something she found silly.

The nightmare was never like  _ that _ before. It felt so real, so terrifying, her need to cry was overwhelming, It was horrible, but she tried to chalk it up as the lack of medication in her system.

She sighed, letting herself sink back into the mattress of her  _ own _ bed that was in her  _ own  _ room. In her and Pearl’s temporary home. She was right here in Ocean Town not completely across the country. 

She rolled over onto her side, taking one final, deep gasp of air as she shut her eyes, trying to steady her breath as she forced herself to drift back to sleep.

She was going to be okay.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> CHAPTER SUMMARY: 
> 
> Jasper and Pearl decide to stay another day at Garnet's house. However, the house suddenly catches on fire while Garnet is at the store. Jasper and Pearl make it out and get to the hospital before being told the fire was caused by smoke grenades and a wrap of linen, to which everyone assumes is from the woman who got away during their heist. Both Jasper and Pearl are treated for smoke inhalation and are otherwise unharmed (minus Pearl being put on vitamins because of her diet) , but later than night Jasper has a nightmare about her past life and an all too familar figure with it. 
> 
> Thank you so much for feedback!


	6. Showdown of the Century

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jasper reunites with someone from her past, and not in a good way.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WARNING: This chapter contains scenes and mentions of hospitals, gun violence, and mental breakdowns! If you'd like to skip this chapter because of these aspects, please see the notes at the end of the chapter for a summary! Stay safe! 
> 
> This pandemic sitaution has been CRAZY. I hope that all of you are staying home when you can and are staying safe and healthy! Let's follow these safety recommendations well so that we can prevent any more infections or deaths and for the people battling this on the front lines. Stay home and read fanfiction!

“Are you taking your vitamins?”

Sleeping after her nightmare was difficult, and barely if any. A single hour of sleep and even more staring at the ceiling later, it was time for Jasper to wake up. It wasn’t much of a surprise that Pearl was yet again already fully dressed and at the stove by the time she managed to lumber down the stairs. Greeted with the glorious scent of fresh coffee and sausage, Jasper was enticed once more, even more when she noticed the mug of beloved Joe on the table ready for her.

With the tall woman’s reminder, Pearl turned from where she stood with a playful glare, before reaching up to one of the cabinets above the stove. Jasper tried to hold back her laughter when she pulled out the newly prescribed bottle, setting it aggressively against the counter. “I will when I have my yogurt.”

“Sorry I’m forcing you to follow doctor’s orders.” Pearl’s response was nothing but her turning back to the stove with an audible sigh. The large woman rolled her eyes with a smile. “Sorry I don’t want my investigator to go into cardiac arrest in the middle of a mission.”

“Oh, shut it.” The thin woman, obviously joking with the both of them trying to hold back their amused chuckling, responded. Jasper brought the mug to her lips with a smile.

“What are the plans for today?”

“Well, Rose is starting to feel better from her flu, so I’ll be meeting her to talk about what happened yesterday and the case so far.” Pearl leaned down to shut off the flames that licked at the bottom of her pan. “You don’t have to join us if you don’t want to.”

“As much as you want to shake me off your tail. I’m assigned to this case for a reason, to keep you safe.” 

“You’re also here to assist me, and you were already going to assist me by stopping at the corner store later today, right?”

“Yep, boss.” Jasper sighed hesitantly. She knew that once Pearl had her mind on something, she wasn’t going to let go of it. She had yet to meet Rose, or see any pictures of her at that, yet she knew that she and Pearl had been acquaintances for years, and while it hadn’t been outwardly said, it looked like Pearl had crushed on her at one point and still possibly did. “I was thinking about finding some cheap exercise equipment to rent and bring home, too.”

“Exactly! Get your muscles nice and strong! I mean, not that they’re _not_ big already-” Pearl’s words turned immediately from confident and inspiring to embarrassed and unsure, the peach haired woman’s cheeks reddening right away. “ _ Not that I’m looking at your muscles!  _ They’re just very big and hard to not notice and-”

“Don’t worry, Pearl. I don’t care that you oogle my biceps.” For added emphasis, the blonde placed her elbow on the table and pulled her hand up to her shoulder, flexing her muscle with brandished pride as her hand traced over the light patch of skin that continued down to her elbow, relishing the shameless stare that it prompted from Pearl. “Hey Pearl, you forgot something else.”

“O-Oh, what would that be?”

“Your vitamins.”

Breakfast finished up quickly, and for once because of the rush Pearl was in to get out the door and not miss her ride, Jasper was able to convince her to let her take care of the dishes. A hasty farewell was shared between the two. Jasper congratulated the other for taking down her vitamins without complaining, and Pearl responded with another stink eye, then she was out the door. 

With Jasper alone in the house, it was time to get ready for the store. Between their first heist and the smoke grenade incident, neither Pearl or Jasper had been able to restock their pantry and fridge. There were other necessary things she needed to grab, but the tall woman was especially concerned about her dwindling supply of energy drinks, and Pearl stated yesterday that she had run out of sewing supplies. 

The store was only two blocks away, and with the sun providing enough warmth so early in the morning, it was an easy decision for Jasper to walk to the store rather than call a car service.

It was a good decision with the weather outside, despite it still being early morning and a bit chilly, perfect for a walk. She still brought a jacket draped over her shoulder, considering that their protocol called that her walk would consist of many detours and much longer than just a fifteen minute walk down the street.

Turning into one of the busier streets on the route to the store, Jasper was shocked to see the number of cars speeding on the road so early in the morning. Her mind wondered, conjuring up stories for each vehicle that passed. Maybe that red Honda pulling into the corner was a hardworking mother taking her children to school. The black Sedan with tinted windows was a busy businessman on his way to his way to work and was on the slower side of driving because his new assistant on the phone was giving him trouble.

Jasper arrived at the store from behind, considering the long detours she had taken to get there. Thankfully, it was early morning and not many people considered coming to the store this early. The items she needed were across the store from each other, the energy drinks in the carbonated drink section and the thread and needles in the accessory's aisle. It gave her plenty of time to think of anything else she needed. 

Walking through the aisles of the store alone made Jasper realize that this was one of the first times she was alone in public since she met Pearl and hopped onto her case. It was unusual without the other’s chatter about the price of bleach or the angry mutters about the ingredients in the waffles (which Jasper enjoyed, thank you very much), but she was also a little terrified. What if something bad was happening to Pearl and she wasn’t there to help her?

_ Don’t worry. She’s with Rose. Besides, she did say I need to stock up the fridge anyways.  _

Despite her thoughts, she continued with her shopping, thankful that gathering her items and making her way to the check out went by without problem.

“Did you find everything alright, ma’am?” The young woman at the check out promptly began to scan her items as they rolled by on the belt. It was so early in the morning, and yet she sounded so enthusiastic and awake. 

“I did, thank you.” Jasper slipped one hand in her pocket to pull out her wallet. “Slow morning?”

“Oh, not at all!” The cashier grinned as she placed the final can in the shopping bag. “A really nice business woman just came in and gave me a  _ huge _ tip!”

“I’m afraid I can’t give as nice of a tip as her…” The tall woman glanced at the price on the register’s screen as the final item was scanned and placed in the bag, thankful to see the amount far less than what she expected. Still, deciding to be a good samaritan today, an extra ten dollars was handed to the cashier.”But I can give you one at least.”

“Thank you, ma’am, have a good rest of your morning!” 

Even if the walk back home would already be long, Jasper suddenly remembered a road in between two buildings that would add an extra five minutes to her walk. She wanted to be safe than sorry, and she would never forgive herself if she ever led Homeworld to their home. Not to mention the road led to the more scenic traits of the city, so she turned left into the alleway rather than right at the next crossing.

The alleyway was much nicer than ones she had passed by through her life. Even six feet tall and trained in combat and self defense, most she would never fathom trying to use as a detour. This one was a fresh breath of air, and suddenly she didn’t mind the half-hour trek back home. She looked down at the bag in her hands, resisting the urge to take a can out right there but resisted. She was going to go to the ‘gym’ after this, so she’d have to wait. By gym, she meant the living room, lifting piles of blankets over her shoulders and finally getting to that yoga DVD she always planned on using.

A new sound from in front of her broke her from her thoughts, foot steps that were coming from around the impending corner. This could be a popular shortcut, and this could very well be a person going along their day, but Jasper felt her muscles tense, and she stopped her walking immediately to stare vigilant holes at the worn-down brick.

Her heart stopped when a slim figure slipped around the corner and into her vision, exactly like how she remembered her yet so unwelcoming and...somehow different.

_ It couldn’t be… _

“Jazmin.” Jasper’s breath caught in her throat instantly, and by the way the sour smirk on the other’s lips only heightened in her audible gasp, this was exactly what she was aiming for. 

“It’s  _ Jasper _ now, Yellow.”

“Oh, I know, ma’am.”  _ Ma’am _ , she hated when people called her ma’am, especially when it came at her in a condescending manner and by a woman she hadn’t seen in three years who looked very unusual in clothes so bulky for her body, different than just the leotard she was so accustomed to see her in. “But my Diamond has ordered me to refer to you as Jazmin, as it is your given name and I wouldn’t want to confuse either of us.”

Jasper shut her eyes tightly. She was having another nightmare, this was just a dream. She wasn’t actually seeing the woman in front of her, and when she opened her eyes, she would be gone and she’d wake up in her bed, surrounded by her warm comforters and the distinct smell of bacon coming from the kitchen.

She opened her eyes, and the woman was still there, a step closer.

“You’re clearly shocked to see me.” The woman hummed with amusement, and Jasper only then realized the phone in her hands. “But my Diamond was  _ thrilled _ at the opportunity to regain contact with you when she discovered the name of the officer assigned to the case against her court next.”

“Why the fuck are you here?”

“I’m here on behalf of my Diamond. She has requested that I meet up with you so we can discuss some very long-awaiting matters.” A thing finger slid against the device in her hands. ”Including your intentions being assigned to this case and your sudden disappearance from Homeworld, what was it? Four years ago?”

“Three.”

“Of course, ma’am.” Jasper was using as much restraint as she could to not simply run up to the other and beat her into the ground. As much as she wanted to escape this all, she would never touch another woman without justified cause, and especially someone who was being forced to do this. “When you disappeared, no one could find out what happened at first. My Diamond thought you were caught by police or a mission went wrong and you were killed. But then we found your room empty, and you can't imagine her relief when she was informed you were still alive and well! Flourishing in police academy just months after you left!”

“If you don’t move out of my way right now I’m going to-”

“Jazmin, we both know that that would only cause more trouble.” She smiled sweetly and gave a little  _ tsk, tsk _ . “We both know that laying even just a single finger on a Diamond’s personal secretary is a huge cause of offense, and you’ve already got many lined up on your name.”

Jasper’s eyebrows furrowed. “What are you talking about?”

“We’re dealing with the initial charges of deflecting, and you know how seriously we take those. Not to mention you’re actively trying to exploit and shut down one of our bases, which is a whole other crime on its own. But being one of Pink’s most favorites, as well as my Diamond’s during the two short years she had you, she has decided to grant you mercy and flexibility regarding your situation.”

Changing her name wasn’t enough? Moving  _ across _ the country hadn’t been enough either? Homeworld was all over the country, but still, she thought she was in the clear of ever having to deal with them personally ever again. “I don’t care about Yellow’s mercy. I’m not afraid to call the police, I have my phone in my pocket right now.”

“I think you’d like to hear my Diamond’s offering. Due to your past status on Homeworld and considering your time there of almost eighteen years, my Diamond has made sure to extend as much of her mercy as White would approve. During these situations, usually deflectors would be punished even if they turned themselves in due to guilt.”

“You mean manipulation.”

“If that’s what you want to believe. However, my Diamond has agreed to cease any punishment if you return to Homeworld on your decision. You can return to your original position, and there was talk of even giving you a few more benefits to help make your transition back as comfortable as possible.”

Jasper couldn’t help but gawk at the other. “Are you dead serious? You really think I’d go through all this trouble of getting away from you jerks just to come back? My answer is no.”

“My Diamond was afraid you’d say that.” Yellow’s eyebrows furrowed in discontent. “She said-”

“I don’t care what she said. I wouldn’t care if she dropped dead right now or if she never said anything again.” She responded flatly. The bag in her hand was slipping from her grip with her palm coming up to firmly press against her forehead, which was becoming increasingly damper by the minute. “Look, right now it’s just you and I. No Yellow Diamond, no guards, nothing.”

The other glanced at her in question. “What do you mean?”

“We both know how Homeworld works. You’re not doing this because you want to. Come with me, I can take you to the police station and you won’t have to deal with this anymore! I’m sure your family would be beyond excited to see you again, I mean, you don’t even have a name anymore!”

Yellow paused, and for a brief moment Jasper almost thought she was taking her words into consideration. Finally, she responded slowly, her voice much quieter than previously. “My family is Homeworld. I live to serve them, and that’s how things will stay until I die.”

She knew if Yellow ever escaped, she would definitely need years of therapy to ever regain her identity back. 

Yellow apparently forgot her consideration altogether with a scoff and a roll of her eyes. “Betraying the empire is the worst crime I could commit. And as we both know, if you try escaping Homeworld, one way or another you’ll always come back.”

“I’m not back there, and I never intend to ever again.”

“I believe I said  _ yet _ , didn’t I? Why do you think my Diamond took time out of her day to visit you specifically?” The phone was slipped back into her pocket. “Now, before you interrupted me, my Diamond was surprised that you still try to rewrite and ignore your past even to this day. Was our past reminders not good enough?”

“Your past reminders? This is the first time I’ve seen any or your damned faces in three years!” She was losing her patience fast. What was she talking about? 

“Reminders don’t have to come in just the form of personal run-ins…” Yellow hummed. “They could come in letters, graffiti,” she gasped, “Impossible gunshot wounds!”

Jasper’s blood drew cold, her stare immediately down to her thigh. ”No way…”

“Ah, ah, my turn to interrupt you this time, ma’am! My Diamond wants me to ensure that you completely understand the rewards and risks of both taking her offer and not taking it!” When it was clear that Jasper was going to stay to at least listen to what she had to say, the short woman grinned. “Now, you could  _ not  _ return to your original roots. If you did so, we’d have to bring you back forcibly, and no one would like that, now would they? However, you could also peacefully surrender yourself and face many less repercussions! You could get your old room back, you could have shower and kitchen privileges, we could even install a second bunk in your room for Pearl!”

_ They knew Pearl’s name, too?  _

That was the last straw for Jasper, and newfound rage and a flux of overwhelming emotions began to course throughout her body. She didn’t scream or yell like she wanted to, though she was sure that her nails were digging into her skin so harshly she'd be bleeding by the time she got home. “I’m giving you one more chance. Get our of my way  _ now _ .”

Yellow lifted her chin with a forced sigh. “I see that you’re going to think about the choices you have. Think hard, we’d love to welcome you and Pearl into our empire again. This won’t be the last time we see each other,  _ Jazmin _ .” 

As soon as the other woman slipped back behind the corner, Jasper  _ ran _ . 

Jasper knew that she could run a path home in the span of ten minutes, especially with the speed she knew her body could produce. She wanted to so badly, she wanted to get back home as soon as possible, but despite the panic in her head there was still a logical part of her brain running telling her to be cautious of which street she ran through. In the midst of her panic, she felt something fall from the bag, with its weight suddenly growing lighter. Whatever dropped was unimportant, it would have to be bought again another time. 

Whenever that was. 

By the time she trampled into the front door, reaching desperately for the key in her pocket, sweat drenched her entire body, and her brain was barely registering anything around her. The key was shakingly jammed into the lock, and Jasper felt a relief hit her as the door opened. She tripped inside, slamming the door behind her and collapsing to her knees as she struggled to regain her breath. She was thankful Pearl wasn’t home, she was a disheveled mess. But at the same time, she would’ve very much appreciated Pearl’s arms or  _ anyone’s  _ arms wrapped around her, or even just another presence to comfort her.

Once her breathing finally calmed as much as she knew it could, she brought herself to her feet, feeling her body tremble slightly under the movement. Double checking she locked the door, she peered into the bag to see how much had survived the run back home. A few things had been thrown out onto the sidewalks apparently, but as far as she could tell a majority of the goods were safe.

Once again, she felt the initial panic fade as she tossed the bag onto the bed, followed quickly by her own body burrowing into a messy heap of blankets and pillows. 

Question after question seared her mind. Why did Yellow Diamond send her secretary out to intimidate her when they quite literally could’ve killed her there right away? How did they figure out where she was, at the cozy little shop at the end of the street in Ocean Town? After three years of silence, they wanted to confront her on her way to buy some damn  _ energy drinks _ ? 

Were they really looking for her? She shook her head, if Homeworld really did have their eyes on her, they wouldn’t have sent just a secretary. 

Unsurprisingly, the thought did not comfort her at all. She wrapped her hands tighter around the poor pillow in her hands, burying her face against its cool surface and shouldering herself deeper into the mattress. Now that she had her face forcefully pushed into the pillow, exhaling through her lips, she let the first tear fall from her cheek, letting it drip into the pillow’s surface, and now it didn’t exist anymore save for the tiny little spot it left on the cotton. Though eventually she couldn’t continue this order and pretend like the liquid grief didn’t exist, soon there were too many to count and they were staining the pillow. It wouldn’t matter, however, she was crying deep in her pillow and when she got up, it would be as if nothing ever happened.

Finally, after who knows how long, Jasper finally pulled herself from the bed, her head reeling with the dizziness once blood began to rush away from her brain. 

She couldn’t do this anymore. She couldn’t be constantly reminded about Homeworld, she couldn’t bear to meet any of them again. Not a secretary, not a soldier, and  _ definitely  _ not a Diamond. If they only sent Yellow’s secretary this time, who would they send the next time she refused?

Impulsiveness was what she felt. She could barely even register when she threw the sheets off her body, stomping out of her room and turning into the hallway.

How would Pearl feel about this? Surely she could get used to a new partner? Still, she had grown fond of the smaller’s presence throughout the time they had together, and she hoped that they would be able to stay in touch. Maybe they’d be able to reunite later on a mission that  _ wasn’t  _ Homeworld related.

In their many cabinets and drawers, Jasper finally found what she was looking for; a piece of notebook paper and a pen.

Leaning against the counter, she flicked the cap away from the pen, watching it shoot off and roll onto the other side of the island. What could she even say in the note? Wouldn’t it be better to say it to her face?

**Dear Pearl,**

That was a good start.

**I’m sorry, but I can’t do this mission anymore. The past week and a half has put so much stress on me that is interfering with my ability to concentrate on my job. Therefore, I'm officially dropping out of this case. Hopefully they’ll assign you a new partner who can handle this level of stress better.**

**I’m sorry if you’re disappointed, I am too. But I hope we can continue to keep in contact with each other. You can text me whenever you want, anytime of the day.**

**Thank you for understanding,**

**Jasper.**

Now all she had to do was pack her bags and be gone by the time Pearl returned home, which hopefully wouldn’t be for a few hours. She wouldn’t be able to face her.

She was a bit less frantic to return to her room then when she had first burst in, when she had kicked off one of the shoes placed next to her closet door like a football. After setting it back in place, she sat back down onto the bed. She was still dizzy from her early sprint, though she discarded it for the time being as she placed her hand against her shorts and rode them up past her thigh.

A gentle thumb came up to tenderly rub at the raised scar against her skin. She frowned, before she sighed under her breath. Were they really behind that, too? It felt as if that had all been yesterday.

Jasper’s eyes fluttered, strength in her body for them to slip open momentarily, but never enough to open completely. She gave a groan as pure white pain seared through her thigh, radiating to the rest of her body as her arm rolled over her hip in an attempt to calm the pain, despite making it worse. What was going on?

_ “Jasper?”  _

A distant voice gave her a little more strength to wrestle for her vision back, and soon enough she was able to spot a blurry, unfocused figure right in front of her; or was she miles away? It was hard to tell, but she was able to pick up more sounds now; the gentle, consistent beeping of a machine, more voices, and a hum that was radiating from above her. She summoned up the strength to crane her head and finally open her eyes fully, and was greeted with two figures hovering over her, in front of a room that was jarringly white.

She was in the hospital, she could figure that out at least. Her vision cleared enough for her to recognize the two women huddled over her bed. She had never been more grateful to see Officer Sardonyx and Officer Sugilite. They’d be able to explain what was going on.

“Jasper, can you hear us? Are you awake?” Came Sardonyx’s concerned call. 

Jasper didn’t respond immediately, instead turning her head to look at the monitor to her left. She narrowed her eyes as she looked at the readings on the screen. “My blood pressure’s a lil’ low…”

Officer Sardonyx;s laugh was extremely contagious, even in the worst of situations. She was sure they could be pulling the most dangerous heist in the world, and if Sardonyx even gave as much of a giggle, they would be compromised and they would all be shot down. “Oh, of course you’d say that! How are you feeling?”

“As good as I can with a…” She didn’t even try pulling herself up, though she did feel much more aware and conscious than just moments before. Enough for her to look down at herself, mostly covered in a thin blanket. Rather than her work clothes, she donned a much thinner hospital gown instead. “What happened?”

“You were shot during the standoff.” Sugilite pushed herself off the bed’s railing to roll up her sleeve, revealing a pad of cotton wrapped up in a piece of gauze. “We got hit, too, but they hit you  _ hard _ . Right in the femoral artery, what a sharpshooter!”

“But I was behind my car…” If waking up in the hospital hadn’t been bad enough, this just made things worse. She wasn’t satisfied with the answer, and she pulled her body up from her bed as much as she could without collapsing back down with a pained hiss and her teammates leaning down to hurriedly aid her back into her pillow. “I wasn’t even facing their direction, there’s no way they could’ve gotten me.”

“You might’ve remembered wrong.” Sugilitie’s pat against her covered knee was well meant, but everything below her hips shot out in downright pain. The older woman clearly saw the recoil in her face and pulled away with a quick apology. “If it wasn’t for Officer Smoky’s quick thinking you would’ve bled out before the ambulance got you to the hospital. They slowed down your bleeding with their shirt!”

“I’ll have to thank them when I see them.” Her gaze suddenly stretched across the room, her eyebrows furrowed as they searched beyond the two at her bed. “Where are they? Is everyone okay?”

“Smoky got hit in the leg, but they’re gonna survive. Alexandrite managed to get away without even a scratch. She’s at the cafeteria, and Smoky is getting fresh wrap for her leg. They’ll be glad to see you’re awake.”

Jasper frowned. “How long was I out?”

“Two days.” Sugilite’s voice faltered as a nurse silently slid into the room, and as soon as she was sure the nurse was going to let them finish their conversation, she continued. “You were a bit conscious before they pulled you into emergency surgery, though.”

“How are you feeling, Officer Zahri?” As the nurse approached the monitor next to her bed, Jasper pushed the blanket from her body as much as she could without adjusting her position. She pulled the thin gown up slightly so she could observe the wound on her thigh. Not that she could see it, though, there was at least an entire wrap of gauze around her upper thigh, and while she could only assume the IV connected through her arm was pumping her with pain medications, pain still radiated from the wound every time she moved.

“I’m feeling okay for just getting my artery blasted.” She slipped the blanket back over her, admittedly thin enough to the point where it provided no additional warmth. Despite this, she was only reminded of the tiredness seeping through her body. 

Even if she was just asleep for two days straight.

“That’s great! Unfortunately, the wound is infected but we’re going to keep a close eye on it as well as your blood pressure!” The nurse’s feedback was appreciated, even if surprisingly chirpy. “I’m sure your eating schedule is messed up, but it's around the time most patients choose to have dinner. Would you like to order something? I can get you a menu.”

“I don’t feel like eating right now, I actually want to get more rest. I’m still extremely tired and I’m still really sore.”

“Actually, the doctor wanted to check up on you as soon as you woke up. She should be here anytime now that you’re awake! As for your pain, we’ll give you another dose of hydromorphone. The doctor will be in here shortly.”

With the nurse leaving the three alone again, Jasper’s confusion was returning as she reminisced back to the stand off. She was behind the car, and Officer Alexandrite had been leaning over the roof taking a shot at the opposition. If anything,  _ she _ should’ve gotten shot, though not that she would ever wish that upon her teammate and friend. But even then, there was no way they could’ve gotten either of them in the thigh. “Did those assholes at least get their asses thrown in jail?”

“After the trial, they aren’t going to see daylight for a long time.” Jasper could hear the grin in Sardonyx’s words. “Multiple charges. They nearly killed an officer, they’re getting their butts kicked for sure.”

It wasn’t long before their conversation of the events leading up to her injury were interrupted once more when the doctor, or at least who she assumed was the doctor, came from where the nurse left, silencing their conversation and prompting Jasper to crane her head. 

“Officer Zahri, glad you’re awake, how are you feeling?”

“Great, again.” Jasper was beyond thankful for the doctors taking care of her. She wouldn’t have been here breathing without them, but she wished she could just go back to sleep. Why couldn’t this wait until later?

“Good. Clearly, we were very worried when you first came in.” The doctor peered down at her clipboard, before slipping a pen from her pocket and returning her glance to the monitor. “During your surgery we had to replace nearly your entire blood volume. It’s a miracle you’re already awake and talking considering how much stress your body has gone through, let alone alive.”

“That’s great, that means I’ll get out of here faster.” Feeling a surge of boldness, Jasper pressed her hands against the bed’s thin mattress, easing herself up as much as she could without mer muscles screaming in pain. “What do you say, Doc? Tomorrow? Another day?”

“I’m afraid that won’t be happening, Miss Zahri. We may have removed the bullet and controlled the bleeding, but you still need time for your body to recover. We also have to tackle the infection, which is something we’ll look closely at, and we need to get started on the basics of physical therapy.”

“Physical therapy? I got shot in the butt. How much therapy am I going to need?”

The doctor smiled at her inquiry, the pen in her hands jotting down quick notes onto her paper.”When you get shot and blow a major artery, Officer Zahri, things happen. Your leg lost so much blood that it nearly died, and it would’ve if we hadn’t packed it in ice right away. Think of the artery as a rubbber band, it snapped, and we had to pull it back together. Physical therapy is going to take a year, no doubt.”

“A year?!” Jasper immediately forced herself to straighten herself in shock, though almost immediately her entire body screamed in pain as she fell back into the sheets with a groan through clenched teeth. A comforting hand from Sardonyx rested against her shoulder, easing some of her anxiety and discomfort. “I have a job to get back to!”

“You can get back to that job when your leg is completely healed and you don’t risk damaging your leg beyond repair.” The doctor’s words were surprisingly stern, causing Jasper to snap her jaw shut and listen to her words. There was no way she wanted to risk her entire leg. “Don’t worry, Officer Zahri, there’s a reason why disability benefits exist. A specialist will come in today to discuss a personalized plan for you, as well as a physiatrist.”

“A physiatrist?”

“Yes. Your mental and emotional health is just as important to us and your physical health.”

“I didn’t even know I got shot, I’ll be fine without emotional therapy.” Jasper rolled her eyes, not at the doctor, and not horribly-meant, but more to herself. Therapy? She was just fine! She just wanted to get back to work.

“Officer Zahri, please listen to your doctor’s advice. I’m not suggesting you go to therapy, I’m  _ telling _ you you need to go to therapy, especially considering you already have diagnosed post-traumatic stress disorder.”

How did she get herself dragged into this? How did she finally agree to do this?

Of course, maybe it was Sardonyx and Sugilite refusing to give back her chair until she agreed to come here. She lasted seven hours on the couch, but the nausea medications she took earlier were wearing off, and she had no other choice but to frantically call out to Sardonyx to set up a therapist appointment or else her couch would be ruined.

“You’re going to be okay, Jasper.” The waiting room would’ve been way better than this. She didn’t need Sugilite’s comforting words, especially not right at the door of the therapist’s room. “We all know it’s going to be difficult for you, which is why we’ll be right outside.”

“That’s not what I’m worried about. I’m going to be okay.” Jasper rolled her eyes. “Maybe it’s the fact I don’t need this at all. We’re wasting money and time. I’m not allowed to go back to work yet, and disability benefits aren’t exactly the best.”

“This is covered by your insurance. Just try it out and see, just for us and the doctors.”

“Fine, fine, whatever. I’m not going to like it, though.” Rather than keeping the therapist waiting and stalling at her doorway, she placed her foot ahead, prompting Sugilite to push the wheelchair forward. This was week one of the transition from wheelchair to walker, and Jasper was having incredible difficulty. Suddenly jeering her walker to the side, dealing with direct pressure to her leg for the first time in three months, even falling over. She was still in the baby stages, and until she made progress she was directed to still use her wheelchair outside of physical therapy appointments. Recovery was going to be long and difficult, but she was determined to get through it. “After this you’re paying for lunch.”

Whatever was the darker woman’s reply was not comprehended, as soon as she even stepped wheel into the room, which she had to admit, felt cozy from the start, a low voice broke her from the rest of the conversation. 

“You must be Jasper. It’s nice to meet you.” Slow, drawled words came from a middle-aged woman seated in one of the two chairs in the room and she was greeted with a smile. “Please come here, I’ve made plenty of room for your wheelchair. Do you need help?”

“No, I’m fine.” Technically she did, but Sugilite was already helping her with it. Her teammate pushed Jasper right next to the nearest chair. 

“Do you want to try to sit in it? It’s a very comfortable chair.”

“N-No, it’ll probably take at least ten minutes for me to get situated.” As much as the seat did look comfortable, she knew they had limited time. She turned her head to Sugilite, a silent acknowledgement that she could go.

“I’ll be right outside once you’re done, okay?” Jasper had no idea what she would do without Sugilite. Demanding that Jasper stayed with her until she could care for herself, refusing to take no as an answer, and helping her with everyday things. She felt like a kid, being helped getting dressed, getting from room to room, even taking a shower.

But then again, she never got these things as a child. Maybe the universe was letting her make up for lost time.

Once Sugilite was well out of the room, the older woman began. “Welcome to our first session, Jasper. You can call me Fluorite. I will be your therapist for this session and any further sessions you wish to pursue.”

“It’s nice to meet you.” Jasper felt bad for her initial rotten attitude; this woman was incredibly nice and was just trying to help her. She decided then that she was seriously going to give all of this the benefit of the doubt.

“Now, can you tell me why your doctors and friends scheduled this appointment?”

“It’s in my records, you already know.”

“I know.” Another smile. “I find it better if the patient says it.”

Jasper clicked her tongue under her breath, not wanting to show her disappointment. “I was shot in the leg. That was three months ago.”

Fluorite was clearly satisfied with her answer, nodding her head with a gentle, low hum. “How have you been holding up since?”

“I’ve been busy with physical therapy and doctors appointments, but I’m starting to transition to a walker now.” Jasper patted at one of her beloved wheels. “It still hurts, but the infection is gone, and I’ve been making good progress with my physical therapy. I should be back on the job in seven months.”

“That’s great, but what about emotionally?”

“I’m restless. I’ve been bored, too.”

“Nightmares?” The older woman finally broke the prolonged eye contact, twisting her body to grab a piece of paper from her desk, as well as a tiny box in her other hand. “Trouble sleeping? Over sleeping?”

“I have nightmares, but not because of the shooting.” Jasper had been having nightmares since  _ long _ before the shooting, and she already accepted that would probably last her entire life. “I sleep just fine, probably too much. If anything, I’m just confused.”

“Confused?” She raised an eyebrow. “Why is that?”

“I mean, there’s no way I could’ve gotten shot.”

“Ah.” Fluorite’s demeanor became softer, if that was even possible from her gentleness from the start. “Why do you think this?”

“Because I  _ couldn’t _ have gotten shot.” Jasper, throughout the past two months, couldn’t stop thinking about this fact. How could a bullet get her front from behind the car, and so low at that?

“Don’t worry, this is not unusual to feel, and you aren’t wrong for feeling it either. Many people start off in denial of their trauma before recovering.”

“No, I don’t deny that I got shot. I was in the hospital for a month. I have to be wheeled around everywhere. Trust me, the bullet has made itself well known in my life. I mean, I  _ literally  _ c ouldn’t have gotten shot, there was no way it could’ve happened.”

“This is because…?”

Jasper was glad someone was at least listening to her now. “I was sitting with my back to the car reloading my gun when the shooting happened. The doctors say the bullet entered from the front, though.”

Fluorite only nodded in understanding, though the genuine frown on her lips made her feel like she had at least been listened to. She set the paper aside, instead placing both hands against the box in her lap. “Has there been anything positive that has happened because of this?”

“Nothing that can outweigh the negatives. I’ve been eating a lot of ice cream, though.”

Of course they had been behind this! How didn’t she guess before?

She buried her head against the pillow again. Every single thing that she did, Homeworld just  _ had _ to be involved. Did she have to move to another country to escape? She didn’t even have a passport! There was too much she needed to think about, she was getting overwhelmed again and-

A voice from outside broke her thoughts. Her inner turmoil paused, and she waited for any more noise.

“Jasper, I’m home!”

_ Shit _ . Pearl was home far earlier than she expected. Her door was closed, if she was quiet enough, maybe Pearl would think she was still at the store or at the gym. But the letter-

**“JASPER!”**

Quick, hysterical footsteps reignited her panic, and she pulled herself away from the pillow in an attempt to fix her appearance. However, it would be impossible to fix her mess of hair and incredibly red eyes in the span of five seconds.

Tears unfavorably began to pour once more as soon as her door burst open, revealing the thinner woman, note in hand.

“Oh, Jasper!” The note was quickly abandoned however when Pearl pinpointed the distress in Jasper’s features. It wasn’t long before she felt another weight in the bed. 

And suddenly, she felt thin arms stretching over her shoulders, and she was sobbing into a pair of miniscule thighs.

“Jasper, take deep breaths.” Jasper’s attention to Pearl's soothing words was small, between the hands massaging tender shapes into her shoulder blades and her face buried against olive-toned skin. In return, strong arms wrapped around her narrow waist, allowing Pearl to lean back against the mess of pillows and blankets. “It’s okay to cry, let it all out…”

Sobbing eventually did die down to heavy, relaxed breathing and reduced sniffles, her grip against the other becoming more slacked. She had yet to pull away from Pearl, though, especially not with the warmth she provided. 

“Jasper, you’re alright. You’re here with me, you’re in your own bed.” When she finally pulled herself away, a warm hand rested against her cheek, drawing away any stray strands of hair that fell to her face. Stars, she probably looked like a mess. “Are you alright?”

Jasper nodded feebly in response. “A bad day.”

“A bad day, and it’s only twelve?” Rather than judgmental, Pearl's words were sympathetic, which usually would’ve annoyed and irritated her more, but for now, especially in her current state, she appreciated it and welcomed it with open arms. “Do you want to talk about what happened?”

Jasper shook her head, thoroughly throbbing and feeling as heavy as a boulder. “I don’t...I just-“

“Uh, uh.” Pearl raised a wagging finger in the air. “Don’t talk about it if you don’t want to.” The hand on her cheek was on the move, brushing away her remaining tears. ”I want to help you, and if you want me to stay silent or even leave I can.”

At the aspect of Pearl leaving her side right now, she shook her head again, desperately, and Pearl clearly saw this as a sign to stay and smiled. “Don’t worry. I won’t leave. I just want to know, is it something I did?”

“No, no, no, not at all! I-” Jasper’s words halted in place when Pearl’s expression changed. Her eyes narrowed and she frowned softly as her eyes fell down to her thigh, still exposing her bullet wound, before instantly pulling back with an awed guise.

“You..”

Jasper exhaled sharply.  _ She figured out _ . She was going to start yelling at her at any moment, she was sure. She was going to be kicked out even, and she would kick her out too if she realized that her partner was a former member of an organization they were currently trying to shut down. Not even telling her? Especially while withholding information? She prepared for all of the anger.

_ “ _ You’ve been on this case before.”

_ …What? _

“That’s why your files said you were so hesitant to join this case. Because you’ve been on it before,” Her hand, unfortunately for Jasper, dropped from her cheek, instead resting against the blanket right next to her thigh. “Oh, that’s how you got this, didn’t you?”

That was off. That was  _ way _ off. Not like she was willing to correct her, however, That was something she’d be keeping to herself for the rest of her life.

Or, as long as she could.

“Y-Yeah.” Her voice, while still shaky, was louder now, steadily recovering from her earlier breakdown. She felt downright embarrassed that Pearl got to see this side of her. No one got to see her like this. “I’m sorry I didn't tell you.”

“You had no obligation to tell me anything!” Pearl’s hand slid sheepishly over her own neck, cradling her own head of peach hair. “Though I do suppose I should start looking for another officer.”

“O-Oh no!” Jasper’s attention quickly fled to the note on the floor. Dammit, she should’ve just written a compulsive hate letter to Homeworld and shoved it in her sock drawer. "I wrote it out of impulse. I still want to be on this case.” 

Not as if she had a choice. Her commander did say she would start her own investigation if she refused or quit early. 

Still, with Pearl at her side, she was starting to get used to everything. Tolerate it, and with each passing day the flame in her heart was beginning to grow larger, hungry for revenge for everything they did to her.

Now it was way too late to step back, something she didn’t particularly mind.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Feedback is motivating and very aprpeciated! 
> 
> CHAPTER SUMMARY:
> 
> While Pearl is gone visitng Rose, Jasper goes to the store and crosses paths with Yellow Diamond's secratary. She tells Jasper (referred to as Jazmin by Yellow due to her past with Homeworld) that Yellow Diamond wishes for her to return back to Homeworld, and that if she decides to peacefully surrender herself over, the repurcussions of betraying the empire would be less severe and Jasper would be greeted back with open arms. Jasper gets angry once Yellow indicates Pearl is involved in this deal, and quickly rushes back home and writes a note to Pearl telling her she's quitting the mission. She begins to think back to first waking up in the hospital after being shot and the confusion she felt on how she got the wound, now cleared up when Yellow explais Homeworld had been behind it the entire time. Pearl returns home only to find the note, and Jasper breaks down and lies to Pearl that she had been on this mission before and that's why she was so overwhelmed by the case, not because she had been a former member of Homeworld. She ends up deciding to stay on the mission.


	7. Chaos of the Final Hours

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jazmin struggles to juggle the responsibilities of her missions and school.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WARNING: This chapter contains scenes and mentions of child abuse and overall toxic environments! If you need to skip this chapter there's a summary at the end notes! Stay safe!
> 
> FLASHBACK CHAPTER!! This is definitely going to explain why Jasper is reacting to things the way she does. This chapter is a little... heavy, so please get ready. 
> 
> THE NEXT CHAPTER IS ENTIRELY FLUFF i swear it'll make up for it

Jazmin’s childhood was different from others, to say the least.

To other kids, life was getting good grades in school, spending time with friends at the mall and learning the responsibilities of life, jobs and driving licenses. To Jazmin, it was doing okay enough in school to not get kicked out, spending all of her freetime training and making sure she did her very best to not disappoint her family and their cause.

She held her first gun at nine and took her first life at eleven.

Her afternoon routine stayed the same all through since she was just nine. Get back from base after the twenty-minute walk from the bus, drop her homework off with the soldier stationed to be handed to Pink’s secretary to take care of. If she wasn’t on a mission, drop her things off in her room and head down to the gym and training room and sharpen up her skills before she was assigned to her next case. 

No one bothered her too much in the afternoon. It was the time when most of her teammates were out doing their jobs, Suppliers were gathering resources, soldiers were out on missions, analysts were out meeting with clients discussing lines of work and amounts of pay for their deeds. This meant the training room was free for her to use.

Her punches were starting to become languid and inconsistent. Underneath all of the wraps and the glove, she could feel the beginnings of next day’s soreness seeping into the ache from yesterday’s mission. Despite all of her experience, her daily activities were not the best for her knuckles.

She gave one last punch, channeling all of the momentum and strength she could, pleased to see the abused punching bag ripple under her strength. Once she was satisfied, she ripped off the velcro of her gloves, tossing them onto the practice mat. Wiping the sweat off her temple, she stepped back to take a good look at herself in the mirror. 

Her hair fell just below her shoulders now, too short to tie up yet too long to stay out of her face, which was something she’d have to ask one of her higher-ups about fixing sometime soon. The past two weeks she had been training hard since her failed mission, yet she saw no change in her techniques or her stature. It made her lips fall into a frown. The guilt and repercussions of another failed mission was something she didn’t have time to deal with, even if it meant taking away some of her sleep hours to add in some extra training time. She  _ was _ only fifteen, but spending most of her time doing some sort of physical activity and taking additional doses of protein every day should have meant some sort or improvement in her work.

She rolled her head back until she heard a satisfying pop, walking down to the second mat and collapsing down next to her water bottle, which once she caught her breath, she would not hesitate to swallow down in one go. She had worked hard, and now it was time to give herself a break.

Jazmin’s peace was immediately interrupted when she heard the door of the training room open. Rolling her eyes, she didn’t even attempt to sit herself up, It was probably another soldier, someone that she would simply ignore and then-

“What do you think you’re doing!?” She cringed when the sharp voice of her higher-up forced her to sit up almost right away despite her muscles screaming at her to relax back into the mat. She internally groaned when she recognized the face of one of the managers around base, Holly Blue ‘’Agate’’ (sometimes, behind her back, the soldiers would replace Agate with a different word that Jazmin didn’t particularly find herself wanting to repeat).

She squinted her eyes momentarily, allowing herself to slowly limber to her feet, before a hand roughly grabbed at her collar and pulled her up the rest of the way with unrestrained strength. She wanted to grab the water bottle off the floor so bad, but she knew that would only get her in more trouble, and she didn’t think that another slap mark against her cheek matching the one already there would sit well with the teachers at school. So she straightened her shoulders, hands languidly rising to form a lazy insignia against her chest. “Taking a break after my training session, ma’am.”

Holly Blue’s response was a dramatic scoff and a roll of her eyes, planting her hands on her hips and impatiently tapping her boot’s heel against the floor. “So you think just because you spend six hours a day sitting at a desk doing nothing you can go ahead and slack off-” 

“No, I-” 

That second slap mark quickly joined the first. 

“Your time intermingling with other kids has made you too immature! You should know better than talking back to a manager!”

Jazmin didn’t particularly care for her other teammates, but she knew they all had a common bond in desperately wanting Holly Blue transferred to another base. “I’m sorry, ma’am. I’ll get back to work right away.”

“Don’t even bother. I wouldn’t be here talking to you without a reason. Pink Diamond requests your presence.”

The mention of Pink Diamond, even from Holly Blue, made her heart warm up, almost taking away the complete soreness of her muscles and her stinging cheek as she allowed herself to stretch out her limbs.

Visits with Pink were often, but still, every time was like an escape of her busy and stressful schedule, a momentary relief of her day.

“Well, what are you waiting for? Are you coming or not?” Holly’s harsh words and the sudden fear of more backlash made Jazmin reach down and scoop the water bottle from the mat, before hurrying to catch up with the manager now leaving through the door.

Even after living here her entire life, she still couldn’t believe how organized and how  _ gargantuan  _ the base was. It was Pink Diamond’s main base, after all, but it didn’t do anything to dull her amazement. Spiraling halls traveled for what seemed like forever, each one introducing a new set of rooms, and sometimes even more hallways. Infirmaries, living quarters, training rooms and miscellaneous, building after building, floor after floor, it would take an outsider months to memorize what room was which.

To this day, Jazmin had no idea how they kept all of these buildings up and running without suspicion. And this was just one base of hundreds around the country.

Thankfully, they were in the same building as Pink Diamond’s throne room, which was the treasure of the base. This also meant that the walk alone with Holly Blue was not a long one. They passed a couple of figures along the way; a few soldiers, another manager, even Pink Diamond’s secretary, who as usual waved at Jazmin as they passed. Holly glared at this, but didn’t say anything else. 

Finally, the two stopped at the entrance of the largest room in the base, properly guarded by a pair of soldiers who eyed them with usual expressions. Both women were frequent visitors.

Despite this, they still had to follow orders.

“Names.”

“Holly Blue, Manager, 9X52 Cut 2B3, Pink Diamond’s Court.”

“Jazmin, Soldier, 5W24 Cut 9GL, Pink Diamond’s Court.” She was sure those had been her first words. She was assigned that code since she was born, and she took that name with pride. She could remember it now, something required out of her for identification. 5W24 Cut 2B3, that was who she was, and that’s who she would be forever.

One of the women at the door nodded, before turning to grip the door’s handle. The second woman followed suit, and both Holly and Jazmin stepped back, allowing the large doors room to open.

It was like stepping into a completely different world. Most of the sights around the base were coded with different amounts of pink, but the throne room was  _ pink _ , and very, very elegant. The floors were so scrubbed and shiny you could see yourself perfectly in their reflection, and pillars decorated lines in the middle of the room, leading up to the large steps near the end that lead to a large platform that took up much of the room. The ceiling was high, and two more guards stayed stationed on each side of a large, intricately decorated throne in the middle of the platform. Sitting on that throne was her.

The woman who gave her shelter, the woman who took her in with concern and affection, Pink Diamond.

“Oh, Jazmin!” Pink cried out and frantically waved her hand as soon as the doors opened, evoking an involuntary smile to spread across her lips, one of the few times that actually happened a day. Her response, along with that smile, was a wave of her own. She was sent a glare from Holly to her side, though she did not condone this action outwardly in front of Pink. “Stop slacking! Come over here and say hello!” Wasting no time, Jazmin gave a silent nod of gratitude to the two soldiers at the door before traveling down the vast room of rose, relieved that Holly Blue didn’t follow behind her. Instead, she heard the friendly sound of those large, heavy doors shutting behind her.

Pink Diamond wasn’t her mother. Her mother deflected Homeworld right after she was born, leaving no tracks except for Jazmin wrapped in a pile of blankets, laying in the middle of a well-made bed shrieking. It was a rare case and highly frowned upon for a baby to be born into the organization. Her mother had broken the rules, meeting up with a man outside of Homeworld. Then, unwilling to face the consequences of birthing a child, she fled the day after. Rather than killing her, abandoning her or kicking her to the curb, Pink Diamond saw something in her and decided to raise her as her own. The very first child who grew up in the empire, and her years and years of training definitely paid off. This was something Jazmin would never be able to thank her enough for.

“Come over here, my little Jazmin.” Pink Diamond leaned down from the throne to pat gently at the blankets that sat just aside her, placed there specifically for her. She shooed one of the guards away to give more room for Jazmin to sit, and she couldn’t refuse, and with a relaxed sigh, she sunk into the mess of soft blankets, resting her head against the throne’s armrest. She smiled when she felt a tender hand run through her hair.

“How was school?”

“The same as usual, my Diamond.” Jazmin still didn’t understand Pink’s strong urge for Jazmin to have a high school education. It wasn’t as if she was going to college. Homeworld was her life, she would stay loyal to it, even after she grew too old to perform her duties and instead became a teacher for new soldiers. “I broke another record in PE, again.”

Pink shook her head, affectionately cupping her hand over her cheek. “That doesn’t surprise me one bit.”

“It was for the fastest mile. Broke it by fifteen seconds.” She supposed her work did have a payoff. Many of the school records were taken by her; fastest mile, longest jump, one after another came, and she didn’t want to gloat, but she was never surprised. Gym was the one period at school she liked. “A few of the students and one of the teachers tried talking to me after school, but I told them I had to get to my part-time job.”

“That’s my good girl!” A hand found itself ruffling through her thick head of hair. Had it been anyone else. Jazmin would’ve shoved it away. “What’s your schedule for the rest of the day, dear?”

“I have a mission at seven after third block dinner.” It was a rare day that she only had just one mission. “Holly Blue caught me resting during my training. She’s probably changing my schedule right now for a meeting in her office after this.”

“We can’t have that.” Pink shook her head. Her gaze wiped from one side of the room to another even though they were the only ones inside besides for the guards. “What about this? I’ll make sure Holly doesn’t kick your ass, and you can have the rest of the day until dinner off! How does that sound?”

Jazmin rolled her neck again, one final attempt to ease as much of the soreness from her body as she could. She slipped her backpack over her shoulders again, the heftiness of her books not helping her aching muscles.

The past few weeks had been gradual in their increase in intensity. With her seventeenth birthday nearing, weight was beginning to be stacked on her shoulders. Mission after mission was moved into her schedule, with nearly three a day at some times. She knew she should take it as a compliment, if your success rate was high, you got chosen for more missions. Even the other Diamonds saw her with great renown. But that came with the burden of a tighter schedule. Returning from a mission, reporting to her supervisor, having ten minutes to cool down and then she was off to her next mission. 

With that and the exam season coming, it was stressful.

Third period was always her least favorite. It was right before lunch, which meant her hunger would distract her from the already challenging geometry. Pink’s secretary may take care of her homework, but exams and in-class work was her own problem.

She slumped into her seat, farthest right in the last row of the classroom, and the seat farthest away from most of her fellow students. The only subject she cared about was physical education, and it was the only subject that helped her outside of school, anyways. She only cared about her other subjects enough for her not to flunk them.

“Jazmin Smith?” Jazmin’s ears perked at the call of her name from the teacher’s desk, prompting her to raise her chin and gaze intently at the woman who called her name.

“Jazmin, you’re needed at the front office.” In all of the months she had had this teacher, she had never seen her look so...concerned. The sympathy made her pucker her lips in a frown, and her eyebrows furrowed. Confused, she stood up, taking her bag over her shoulders and made her way down the side of the classroom. Thankfully, the classroom wasn’t too full just yet.

When she passed the front desk, she was immediately stopped with a frail hand pressing tenderly against her forearm. She stopped in her tracks, facing the teacher with daze.

“Just know you have an entire support system here at school Jazmin.”

What was that about? She discarded the thought as she turned out of the classroom. Maybe she failed a test and they were sending her to the office for it. Maybe too many tardies piled up, and she was getting in trouble because of it just like the other students.

No. She wasn’t like other students. Other students didn’t have her responsibilities. Other students didn’t have purpose like she did. She was below them all, she was below everyone. And she had to work herself dead tired in order to make up for that. She had motivation that Homeworld granted her that no one else had, and she would never be less thankful.

When Jazmin pulled into the door to the office, she frowned again when she realized there was more than just the front assistant and her in the room. A few students were lined up waiting in the chairs seated against the wall, and there were a handful of men and women circled around one of the worker’s desks.

“Hello!” A chirpy voice of the secretary--different than the ones at home-- didn’t do anything to contain her irritability. She didn’t snap outwardly at anyone, instead just staying silent until prompted otherwise. “What are you here for?”

“Jazmin Smith.” Jazmin didn’t like to talk during school, especially with teachers. She felt like they could see past her lies, and she was afraid that rather than saying ‘Smith’, she would say her soldier code by accident. “My teacher called me down.”

“Oh, of course!” Just like her math teacher, an empathetic smile was shared, disgusting Jazmin to no end. She turned her body to one of the women at the desk, catching her attention, The woman in return stepped closer to Jazmin, extending her hand in wait for a hand shake and causing the soldier to tense up.

“Hello, Jazmin. You can call me V.” The woman’s voice was firm yet soft, and even if Jazmin was nearly the same height as her, with her heels and the black suit she wore, she was still intimidated, as she was with all authority, and as she should be. “I’m from Child Protective Services. Is it alright if we talk for a bit?”

Jazmin began to stumble for words. Child Protective Services? What did they want? Jazmin stuffed her hands in her pockets, allowing them to clench tightly into fists. Rather than respond verbally, she merely nodded, still trying to comprehend what they were doing there for  _ her _ .

“Great, we appreciate it.” The woman smiled. “If you’ll follow me into one of the back rooms, we can talk in a more confidential matter.” Before Jazmin turned to follow the woman, she craned her head back to glance at the students still waiting at the chairs. High schoolers were so nosey, why couldn’t have V waited to let out so much information out when they were alone?

V waited for Jazmin to enter the room before closing the door behind her. “Come in, Jazmin. Sit down here.” Following her orders, Jazmin slid onto one of the seats at the small, bean-shaped table, resting her backpack against the table leg. Once the second woman sat down in the other chair, she pulled out a few files from her bag, before resting her elbows against the desk and turned to face Jazmin. “Now, Jazmin, everything you say in here is completely confidential unless I think you’re in immediate danger. It’s just you and I here, and I want to be your friend, okay?”

Jazmin nodded again, still partially disgusted.

“Now, can you tell me your name, please?”

What sort of question was that? She had said her name almost five times since they first met. Which was thirty seconds ago. “Jazmin.”

“Jazmin…?”

She was confused at first at the other’s questioning glance, before immediately realizing her mistake. “Jazmin Smith.”

“Great, and your age and date of birth?”

“Fifteen. Ten fourteen ninety-seven.”

“Oh, your birthday is coming up!” The woman looked down at her papers with satisfaction. “Alright, thank you, Jazmin. Do you know why we’re here today?” When she shook her head, V trapped the edge of her paper between her thumb and her finger, lifting it up and moving onto the next sheet. “Well, we received a report from an anonymous person that your life at home may not be the safest for you. Someone is afraid you’re being abused, Jazmin.”

Who said that? With almost complete certainty, her mind assumed it was the teacher in her mathematics class, or the kid in her PE class who always seemed to glare with envy every time she broke a new record.

Because it certainly wasn’t her fault, right? She was hiding her tracks very well, Pink said so herself. She gave no personal information about where she went after school. She always covered up her bruises and cuts. She knew how to lie her way out of questions and keep a perfect record. She couldn’t have failed, she couldn’t have let Homeworld down.

“I know that’s a lot to take in, and I know this isn’t something that’s easy to talk about.” V then closed her file, pulling out a notebook and pen from her bag. “But I’m here to help you. You don’t have to be scared of me, I’m not going to hurt you, alright?”

Jazmin nodded.

“You have a mother, don’t you? What about a father?”

“I have a mother. Her name is Pari Smith.” Jasper was trained for situations like these. She had an entire fake script for her life. “I never met my father. He left before I was born, we live in the Wood Meadow Apartments ten minutes away from the school.”

“Any siblings?”

“No, ma’am.”

V raised an eyebrow. “Alright.” She took a few seconds to jot down something in her notebook. “What is the relationship between you and your mother like, Jazmin?”

“We both love each other a lot. She takes care of me, feeds me and provides me shelter, and in return I help keep the apartment clean and do my best in school.”

V was clearly not satisfied with the answer, though her expression wasn’t stern. “Jazmin, this anonymous tipper has also reported that you’ve come to school with some very concerning injuries. Many bruises and cuts, black eyes, you came in with a broken arm once. Does your mother hurt you?” 

“She would never lay a hand on me.”

And it was technically true. She couldn’t help that sometimes missions went wrong and she was injured. She couldn’t help that managers understandably got angered with her mistakes and gave her the right punishment. Wasn’t that just a part of life?

“Jazmin.” V set her pen down, looking back up at Jazmin rather than her paper. “I care for you. You can tell me anything about your life at home. We can take care of it, we’ll set up a support system for you. We’ll make sure nothing happens to you, and you never have to deal with the abuse at home again.”

She bit her lip, her eyebrows furrowed again. She couldn’t help as her gaze fell to the floor, eyeing her worn down shoes. Could they? Would she ever tell them about Homeworld? Of course not! Homeworld cared about her well-being. Homeworld cared for her, provided her with everything she needed. She would never give that up.

“Doesn’t every family sometimes punish their kids?” 

“Not in an abusive manner, no. No parent would ever physically beat their child as a punishment. Families don’t put their children in harm's way. Parents are supposed to care for their child’s every need, and provide them a safe and comforting home where they can feel like they’re secure and safe. When the parents can’t, that’s when we are forced to step in.” 

But that’s not what Homeworld did. 

She shook her head desperately. No, Homeworld loved her. Homeworld cared for her. Sure, they punished her when she did wrong, but it was because she  _ deserved _ it. People face consequences when they make mistakes, and she made way too many. Homeworld was the perfect family, even if they did hit her. Even if they did belittle her. Even if they did force her to do unspeakable things she wanted to destroy herself over. 

Jazmin paused, and just like that, a wall that had been building up her entire life came crashing down. 

They didn’t care about her at all. They saw her as a soldier and nothing else.  _ Pink Diamond  _ didn’t care about her enough to not send her out on deadly missions. Everything she knew was a lie, everything she had ever been told was a lie. Her entire existence was a lie. This wasn’t happening. 

_ No, no, that’s not true! _ A voice screamed at her in her head, and it wasn’t her own voice anymore.  _ Don’t listen to this woman! She’s trying to brainwash you! She’s the real enemy, not your family!  _

What could she believe anymore? She felt salty tears stream down her cheeks.

“W-Why do I feel so horrible right now?”

“Because you’re being manipulated. Whoever is making your living situation dangerous has you wrapped around their finger, making you see a loving figure high on a pedestal. That’s manipulation, and a lot of children go through it.”

Manipulated, she was manipulated, brainwashed. Pink Diamond wasn’t a flawless leader, a motherly figure. If she really loved her, she wouldn’t make her go on missions she despised. 

_ They took you in because your parents didn’t want you. Without them you would be dead. _

Why hadn’t her mother taken her when she fled Homeworld? Things didn’t have to be the way they were right now. She didn’t have to figure out she had been brainwashed her entire life. Maybe she could’ve actually had a loving mother and father. Parents who supported her, who encouraged her to play on the school’s football team, which was something she often daydreamed about in her free time. 

_ Because you don’t deserve a happy family. You deserve everything that comes to you. _

“I..” Jazmin didn’t even know how to begin. Was she actually going to do this? “I lied about what I said earlier.”

_ You’re a failure. _

“That’s alright, you were scared.”

_ You've betrayed your family. You deserve punishment. _

She was silent for another moment. She was alright at hiding her fear and overwhelm of emotions before, but how much longer? She was not prepared for this. “I…I need to prepare myself for this. Can we do this tomorrow? Please?”

“If that’s what’s most comfortable for you, Jazmin.” She picked up her pen again, scribbling something at the bottom of the page. Then, she tore off the piece, sliding it into her palm. “Here’s a number you can call if you feel unsafe at any time. You can confidently talk with someone or you can ask them to call the police for you for help.”

Her head was reeling.

New emotions were invading her, and she wanted them all to stop. She still tried to believe that Pink Diamond loved her and cherished her like she said she did. She couldn’t even dare to think it wasn’t true. She never outwardly thought about the ethics of Homeworld, denying that it was as bad as the media said they did was. Surely it was understandable if that’s how they made their living, right? Who cares if she took other people’s lives, it was what she was told to do, and that’s how she survived.

She always dreaded stepping off the bus and slipping into one of the side streets at the end of town. Today was a whole new level of unease. She crinkled the small piece of paper in her pocket between her fingers, biting her lip.

She didn’t have a cell phone, but maybe if she changed her direction to one of the stores down the street, she could ask to use the phone there. Then, she’d never have to go back to Homeworld and she’d-

She felt a large hand grasp at her shoulder harshly, pulling her back away from the street with enough force for her to almost fall over. Her first instinct kicked in, her body’s adrenaline throwing her into a fight and ready to attack. Before she could twist around, throw the first punch and open her mouth to scream for help, a strained whisper prompted her to drop her arm.

“5W24, do not resist.” She didn’t talk to many of her fellow soldiers at base, but she immediately trusted this was one of them based on the fact that her code was shared. No one who wasn’t a member would know it. Still confused, she turned to face her now, even when she didn’t stop to give Jazmin time to adjust. She found herself being pulled along with the hand still on her shoulder.

“What? What’s going on?”

“There’s been an emergency at base.” for some odd reason, Jazmin only realized until just then the large van parked at the end of the street. The windows were blacked out, of course, but she could only assume that there was a second person in it. “We’re evacuating.”

“To Pink’s next base?” Sometimes, if there was a risk of a base being discovered by police, they’d pack up and head to the next base over until they knew it was safe, or if they discovered that a base had been seized. Of course, being at Pink’s main base, they were the ones that occasionally got new guests crashing with them. They were always returning to their base by the next day.

They reached the van soon enough, and the soldier followed her to the doors on the back of the van. They were swung open, and almost immediately Jazmin felt herself being forcefully shoved into the empty space, and as she stumbled to the metal floor, she distantly heard the doors close behind her.

“No.” The soldier didn’t respond to her until after she had flocked into the passenger seat, too. As soon as the door was closed, the driver, a supplier she guessed, pushed hard on the gas pedal, and Jazmin jolted slightly as her body was pushed back. “All of Pink’s bases are being evacuated.”

“What!?” Why were  _ all _ of Pink’s bases evacuated? What had gone so wrong that an entire court had to retreat? This never happened in the past. “Where’s Pink Diamond?”

No response. Jazmin could see the nervous and heartbroken expression through the front mirror. It scared her.

“Where’s Pink Diamond?!”

The soldier finally turned around.

“Where is-”

“She’s dead!”

Jazmin was in shock.  _ What? _ What the hell was she talking about?

“She’s dead. She was assassinated. We have to evacuate all of her bases in case they’re reported to the police.”

Her head was reeling, emotions flooding her mind and overwhelming her. Pink Diamond wasn’t dead, it was all just a huge misunderstanding! “N-No, she’s not dead!”

“Don’t,” Jazmin’s blabbering was cut off when the soldier’s voice suddenly turned cold. “We’re on our way to White’s main base. It’s going to take a while until we get to our first stop. No crying. You aren’t allowed to talk.”

When she turned back away, Jazmin could barely believe how calm and collected she was. She was trying to calm herself down, tell herself this wasn’t happening, but tears were beginning to flood down her cheeks, still trying to deny what the soldier had said.

Pink Diamond is dead.

She pulled herself against the wall of the van, cupping her palm over her mouth and burying her face into her knees as she sobbed silently into her skin.

_ She’s not dead. _

Jazmin hated Homeworld. Jazmin was miserable.

She had been to White Diamond’s base quite a few times. During the annual meetings there, and with having room enough for the entirety of Homeworld’s ranks during these times, her base was thankfully large enough to fit the number of evacuees from Pink’s bases. It was the motherboard of the entire organization, after all.

The van finally pulled into the large car garage that was seated below the main building of the base, and she wasn’t surprised noticing through the tinted windows that it was almost impossible to find a place to park. Cars, vans, all only similar with tinted windows, of all kind filled every space she saw, and spaces that weren’t filled with vehicles still trying to find spots were packed with dozens of people filtering from their respective vehicles, flocking to where she knew the large staircase leading to the heart of the base was.

“Come on.” Much to her surprise, the supplier that was driving the van was much more patient and compassionate than the soldier was, who was already out of the car and flocking towards the rest of the crowd. Even as Jazmin stepped out of the van, a comforting arm was pulled over her shoulders. Usually, she would’ve shooed it off, but right now, it was one of the best things she had ever felt. “Everything is going to be okay.”

The worst part was definitely going to be shoving their way past the crowds of people trying to escalate up the stairs. This  _ definitely _ wasn’t just Pink’s court. People in Blue and Yellow Diamond’s uniforms were crowding in, too. White Diamond must’ve called a Homeworld wide emergency meeting. She only realized just then that she was the only one without a uniform on. Her cheeks turned a darker shade of brunet.

From the stairs, which released into the main lobby of the base—much larger than the one back at Pink’s—it would be a walk out the doors and to the large stadium right next to the building, which had to be the largest structure in all of Homeworld.

Outside, it was very fitting that the weather was horrible. The rain beat down on the concrete, dark clouds filled the sky, and the distant rumble of thunder only fit the mood more.

“Enter the stadium in triple file lines!” Two of White Diamond’s soldiers were stationed next to each opening of the stadium, still trying to keep some sort of organization among the crowd. “Blue Diamond’s court sits in the blue seats, Yellow Diamond’s court sits in the yellow seats, and Pink Diamond’s court sits in the pink seats, just like normal!”

Jasper was never fond of crowded spaces, and despite how large the stadium was, it seemed like the thousands of people that were shuffled in were purposely closing in on her.

The stadium’s seats were raised and filled as far as Jazmin could see except for the middle of the dome, as well as four tunnels that connected to the large clearing. In the middle, there were four, large thrones that were planted to the respectable color of the seats. It was a magnificent build, and she knew that there had been thousands of strings pulled to get the indoor stadium fit perfectly to White’s standards when it was first built way before she was born.

The thrones were empty, right now, as the stadium was still filling up with people trying to desperately grab their seats. After five long minutes of searching, they finally managed to grab two seats near the back of the wall. The bright lights almost made her eyes hurt.

“Hey,” A hand once again found itself on her shoulder. She turned and glanced upwards at the woman. She vaguely recognized this supplier, even if she didn’t remember her code. Her hand gently slid back and forth in the space between her shoulder blade and her neck. “We’re going to figure this all out. Don’t worry.”

The silence between the two lasted for about fifteen minutes, with Jazmin taking this time to try and comprehend what was happening. Finally, just like annual meetings, the slow dimming of the lights above triggered silence to spread quickly among everyone inside the stadium. Four bright headlights shone down in the middle, one for each throne.

“Homeworld!” An intercom speaker spoke throughout the stadium, ringing in her ears painfully. “Please rise for the great Blue Diamond!”

Despite the mood that had settled among the crowd, it was almost as if all sadness pleated as figures all around the stadium stood from their chairs, relieved cries immediately replacing the earlier quietness.

As a tall woman entered through one of the narrow tunnels that connected with the middle clearing, the noise only increased. Jazmin could feel the vibrations of stomping along the ground, anticipation at its height as they all watched her slowly make her way across the clearing,her heavy, long gown trailing slightly behind her . The dark, tall haired leader was accompanied by a thinner and smaller figure, her secretary. Ice blue bangs nearly covered her eyes, hands clasped respectfully over her chest as she continued to trail behind Blue Diamond. She was wearing her standard uniform; a sleeveless, light blue leotard and a willowy, translucent skirt that fell down to her calves and bobbed and swished every time she walked. She wondered what it would be like to have a secretary, even if it was impossible. Only the Diamonds got them, and it would be too much responsibility for her sixteen-year-old self.

Finally, the woman lowered herself onto her throne, and the clapping died down. Not for long, however.

“Homeworld! Please rise for the magnificent Yellow Diamond!”

Cries once again started right back up, following the reveal of the second leader through her respective tunnel. She was tall, taller than Blue Diamond, donning a bright, powerful business suit and her dark skin embroidered with gold jewelry. Once again, she was followed by a secretary. This time, amongst the crowd, she could even hear a chant of ‘ _ Yellow, Yellow, Yellow! _ ’ from the amber-colored crowd of seats.

“Please, Homeworld, rise for your leader.” Even the woman over the intercom seemed to be bursting with joy, “The lustrous, luminous White Diamond!”

The stadium went  _ absolutely crazy. _

Yellow and Blue Diamond were important, very important, and no one would ever dare to question that. However, White was the leader of everyone,  _ even  _ them, and that aspect of power that she held in her palms single-handedly made her the most respected figure in the criminal business, even outside of Homeworld and even among those who knew nothing but her name and what she did.

White Diamond was tall, at least a few heads over Yellow, her black lipstick and sharp eyeliner visible even in the crowd and her suit as pristine and as white and sparkling as her pale skin. Unlike the others, a secretary didn’t follow.

The noise and commotion took much longer than earlier to die down, though White didn’t do anything to stop it herself, not even with a raise of her hand. She relished in the bask of pride and embellishment, and Jazmin couldn’t exactly blame her. She would, too.

“Thank you, everyone, for gathering in such a short amount of time.” Once the initial excitement of being in the presence of the Diamonds again wore down, the weight of the past two days began to settle again, no longer held back by the clouds of momentary exhilaration and joy of reuniting with her empire. Spending the last two days in the back of a van, prohibited from speaking and left to her own devices to grieve silently, didn’t exactly do the best for her health, especially considering the events before at school. “Some of you have traveled an hour. Some two, and many of you days, and all without before-hand notice. I am proud of you all for staying so calm during the middle of this chaos and confusion.”

“We whole-heartedly agree, White.” Yellow’s words chimed in.

Once curious muttering once again died down, White continued. “You’ve all heard by now the rumor that’s been shaking all of us. Unfortunately, we’re here to confirm that Pink Diamond is dead.” Despite knowing the words were coming, they still hit Jazmin like a ton of bricks. And she wasn’t the only one affected, all the way around the stadium, she could hear grief-stricken cries from those around her, restraining sniffles and hidden sobs behind palms. They were the most prominent in Pink’s section of the stadium, though it was a tragedy for everyone. “The infamous traitor Rose Quartz slipped into her throne room and past her guards. That’s where she shot Pink while she was distracted, before fleeing the scene. Her whereabouts are currently unknown.”

“We can also confirm that two of Pink Diamond’s bases have already been seized by police, tipped off by an anonymous source that we can all guess is you know who.” Collective shock rang out again. Homeworld hadn’t had a base seized since she could remember, having two in the span of days was a large hit to their profit. “We suspect no more will fall, but Pink’s court will be residing here until the all clear is given to return.”

Blue didn’t talk, and it was clear by the way her body was trembling, visible even in the seats, and the hand pressed over her mouth that the grieving woman wouldn’t share any words. “Which brings the question, what will happen to Pink’s court after this?”

“I will answer this, Yellow. Pink Diamond’s court, as well as her remaining bases, will be equally shared among all three of us. One third of you will be distributed into my court, and the other two thirds between Blue and Yellow’s. Within the next day, we will have a list of new assignments for you all, and after that, we will begin the process of fitting you with your new respective uniforms. Once we have everything settled, we will discuss the means of transport and which new base you will be assigned to.”

Jazmin closed her eyes, trying to drown out everything happening around her. She wasn’t supposed to be here. By now, she would’ve had her second meeting with Child Protective Services. They would’ve called the police, and she never would’ve had to deal with Homeworld ever again. Right now she could’ve had a warm blanket wrapped around her, being taken care of by the gracious people who would help her get her life back together. She could’ve been talking with someone who would listen to her and help her deal with everything she had ever gone through, comforting her as they planned where she would go next and which loving family would take her in until she was eighteen.

She had lost what might’ve been her last chance to ever escape Homeworld.

“My soldiers will be setting up temporary sleeping quarters in the B3 building, and some of the rooms in the medical wing will be transformed as well. A handful of you will be granted your own rooms or will be assigned an empty bed in any empty bunkers we have. Dinner, blankets, and showers will be open for all of you tonight. I expect Blue and Yellow’s court to be on their way back to their bases by morning, as well as my own who aren’t stationed here.”

White gazed out across the hundreds looking back at her, looking for reassurance, for comfort, and most importantly for leadership, and she was determined to give it to them.

A tight smile formed against the corners of her lips. “Homeworld, this may be a hit, but we haven’t fallen yet. This isn’t the first time we’ve dealt with a bad situation, and this won’t be the last. Keep your heads up, we will get through this, but for now, you are dismissed.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> CHAPTER SUMMARY: 
> 
> This chapter is a flashback chapter and starts off with fifteen-year-old Jazmin (Jasper) training for her next mission. She's stopped by Holly, who expresses her distaste at finding Jazmin resting against the mats, and is escorted to Pink Diamond's throne room, to give a report about her day to her. The next scene starts off with sixteen-year-old Jazmin being sent to the office in the middle of the school day, where a representative from Child Protective Services is waiting to have a talk with her. After explaining someone has tipped them off that Jazmin may be experiencing abuse at home, she manages to help Jazmin see past Homeworld's manipulation and realize how dangerous of a situation she's in. She promises that she'll be ready to tell them everything about her abuse after a day of preparation, but before she can return to school the next day all of Pink Diamond's bases are suddenly evacuated. All of Homeworld gathers at White Diamond's main base, where she announces that Pink Diamond was assassinated by infamous traitor Rose Quartz and two of Pink Diamond's bases have been seized. She explains that the remaining of Pink's bases and her .gems' will be equallyd distributed among the remaining three Diamonds, and that Homeworld will take revenge and grow stronger after Pink's death. The chapter ends off ith Jazmin realizing she may have lost her very last chance to ever escape Homeworld.
> 
> Feedback and comments are greatly appreciated and motivating!


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